Amazon Commits $10,000 in Additional Support to Prevent Drunk Driving in Greater Washington Over the Independence Day Holiday
NEW INVESTMENT FORTIFIES JULY 4TH SOBERRIDE® PROGRAM DURING A HOLIDAY WHEN OVER 40% OF U.S. TRAFFIC DEATHS INVOLVE DUI
Washington, DC, June 30 – Today Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), already a supporter of the Washington-metropolitan area’s popular free safe ride service to prevent drunk driving, SoberRide®, announced it will invest an additional $10,000 to fortify the anti-DUI effort during next month’s Independence Day effort.
Offered by the nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP), the 2022 Independence Day SoberRide program will be in operation beginning at 4:00 p.m. on Monday, July 4th (Independence Day) and operate until 4:00 a.m. on Tuesday, July 5th offering free safe rides to would-be drunk drivers throughout the Washington-metropolitan area as a means of keeping local roads safe during this traditionally high-risk holiday.
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, over 40-percent (41%) of U.S. traffic deaths involve drunk drivers.*
“Amazon’s further investment in this local and lifesaving program is a real and needed shot in the arm to better equip WRAP and SoberRide® to rid area roadways of impaired drivers,” said Kurt Erickson, WRAP’s President. “In as much, Amazon’s latest community investment will enhance SoberRide’s® capacity in time for a holiday when more than four-in-ten U.S. traffic deaths involve drunk drivers.”
Amazon already serves as an Executive-level sponsor of the local SoberRide® program.
“As we head into the July 4th holiday weekend, we are grateful to be partnering with the Washington Regional Alcohol Program to provide free, safe rides to thousands of passengers across the Greater Washington region,” said Patrick Phillippi, Senior Manager of Community Engagement at Amazon. “At Amazon, we are committed to being a good neighbor and partner to the community and we wish everyone a safe and healthy holiday weekend.”
During the twelve-hour period when SoberRide® is offered over the 2022 Independence Day holiday, Greater Washington area residents age 21 and older celebrating with alcohol may download the Lyft app to their phones, then enter the SoberRide code in the app’s “Payment” tab (under the “Add Lyft Pass” option) to receive their no-cost (up to $15) safe transportation home. WRAP’s 2022 Independence Day SoberRide® promo code will be posted at 3:00 p.m. on Monday, July 4th on www.SoberRide.com.
SoberRide® is offered throughout Lyft’s Washington D.C. coverage area which includes all or parts of: the District of Columbia; the Maryland counties of Montgomery and Prince George’s and towns therein plus the cities of Bowie, College Park, District Heights, Gaithersburg. Glenarden, Greenbelt, Hyattsville, Laurel, Mount Ranier, New Carrollton, Rockville, Seat Pleasant and Takoma Park; and the Northern Virginia counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William and towns therein plus the cities of Alexandria, Fairfax, Falls Church, Manassas and Manassas Park.
Since 1991, WRAP’s SoberRide® program has provided 82,300 free safe rides home to would-be drunk drivers in the Greater Washington area.
More information about WRAP’s SoberRide® initiative can be found at www.SoberRide.com.
*National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA): https://www.trafficsafetymarketing.gov/get-materials/drunk-driving/drive-sober-or-get-pulled-over/4th-july-drive-sober
About Amazon
Amazon is guided by four principles: customer obsession rather than competitor focus, passion for invention, commitment to operational excellence, and long-term thinking. Amazon strives to be Earth’s Most Customer-Centric Company, Earth’s Best Employer, and Earth’s Safest Place to Work. Customer reviews, 1-Click shopping, personalized recommendations, Prime, Fulfillment by Amazon, AWS, Kindle Direct Publishing, Kindle, Career Choice, Fire tablets, Fire TV, Amazon Echo, Alexa, Just Walk Out technology, Amazon Studios, and The Climate Pledge are some of the things pioneered by Amazon. For more information, visit amazon.com/about and follow @AmazonNews.
About WRAP
Commemorating its 40th year in fighting drunk driving and underage drinking, the nonprofit [501(c)(3)] Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) is a coalition of diverse interests founded in 1982 and using effective education, innovative programs and targeted advocacy to end alcohol-impaired driving and underage drinking in the Washington, DC metro area. Through public education, innovative health education programs and advocacy, WRAP is credited with -keeping the metro-Washington area’s alcohol-related traffic deaths historically lower than the national average. WRAP, however, may best be known to area residents via the organization’s popular free safe ride service for would-be drunk drivers, SoberRide®. For more information, visit WRAP’s web site at wrap.org and follow @WRAP_org.