New Year’s Eve. A wonderful evening of being with friends and family, reminiscing about the year behind and wistfully expecting the year ahead. But for some, this fun-filled night will end in disaster and tragedy. That disaster may take the form of a DUI, or worse – a drunk driving accident that injures or even claims lives.
Whether you’re the drunk driver, a passenger, or a sober driver of another car, you can be a victim of the poor judgment associated with drinking and driving.
Let’s kick off 2015 the right way and work together to keep drunk drivers off Orange County roads!
Here are some of our New Year’s Eve safety tips:
1. Stay in.
Whether at home or a friend’s house for a New Year’s Eve party, make plans to stay put. If you’re not home, get permission from the host to bring a sleeping bag and pillow and crash on the floor. If you’re hosting, make accommodations for your guests to spend the night as well.
This applies not only to those who’ve been drinking, but also to those who wish to avoid the slew of drunk drivers that will inevitably be on the road on New Year’s Eve.
2. Use a driving service.
In Los Angeles and Orange County, here are some of your options:
- Taxi cabs. California Yellow Cab’s number is easy: Either (714) or (949) followed by 444-4444.
- Uber. Uber connects riders with drivers in their area using a simple smartphone app.
- Lyft. This company is partnering with MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) on New Year’s Eve – a portion of every ride from Lyft will be donated to MADD.
- Drunk Rescue. Drunk Rescue drives you home in your car, so you’ll wake up the next morning with your car parked safely in the driveway.
3. Don’t drink.
The easiest way to prevent a DUI or drunk driving incident on your end is to simply not drink! If you’re under 21, it’s against the law for you to consume alcohol anyway, so don’t jeopardize your future with a few useless beers.
If you’re 21 or over, you’re allowed to partake, but just because you can doesn’t mean you should. You can have just as much fun without it anyway. And you’ll remember it the next day, AND you’ll wake up feeling refreshed and energized for the year ahead, rather than spending your first day of the new year in bed nursing a hangover.
Not sure how much is too much?
If going out drinking is a regular occurrence for you, we hope you’re taking responsible precautions to avoid getting behind the wheel. Investing in a portable breathalyzer test is one option for you. These range in price from $30 to $150. Keep in mind, however, that the BAC (blood alcohol content) results from portable breathalyzers are often inaccurate. Police use them to confirm the presence of alcohol, but they do not rely on them for BAC – that is why blood tests are given upon arrest for DUI.
Several factors will affect your BAC, such as height and weight, age and gender. “Rules of thumb” and online BAC calculators may be inaccurate, as everyone is different. Also remember that once you sober up from drinking alcohol, you might be very tired. In that case, it is still unwise to drive.
If there is ANY doubt whatsoever, PLEASE don’t risk it.