Nearly 800 Use Local SoberRide® Program On Halloween Weekend

DC AREA’S DUI PREVENTION EFFORT REMOVES POTENTIAL DRUNK DRIVER FROM AREA ROADWAYS EVERY 27-SECONDS LAST WEEKEND

Washington, D.C., November, 5 – A whopping 777 persons in the Washington-metropolitan area used the free safe ride service, SoberRide®, this Halloween (Saturday, October 30) as opposed to possibly driving home drunk – the second highest level of ridership for that holiday in SoberRide’s 30-year history.

“For its hours of operation this Halloween, this level of ridership translates into SoberRide removing a potential drunk driver from Greater Washington’s roadways every 27 (27.7) seconds,” said Kurt Erickson, President of the nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program, the organization conducting the region’s SoberRide® effort.

WRAP’s 2021 Halloween SoberRide® campaign began at 10:00 pm on Saturday, October 30, 2021 and continued until 4:00 a.m., the next day, Sunday, October 30, 2021, as a way to keep local roads safe from potentially impaired drivers during this traditionally high-risk holiday. During this six-hour period, area residents celebrating with alcohol could download the Lyft app to their phones, then enter the code “SAFEHALLOWEEN21” in the app’s “Promo” section to receive their no cost (up to $15) safe transportation home while supplies lasted. SoberRide® was available to both new and existing Lyft users.

Lyft provided SoberRide® trips throughout the Washington-metropolitan area to local residents age 21 and older who otherwise may have attempted to drive home after drinking.

The most recent Halloween ridership of 777 users was the second highest for that holiday since SoberRide® began in 1991. The charity also offers its free safe ride service on St. Patrick’s Day, Cinco de Mayo, Independence Day and the winter holidays through and including New Year’s Eve.

SoberRide® was 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 the Northern Virginia counties of Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William.

Sponsors of WRAP’s 2021 Halloween SoberRide® campaign include the 395 Express Lanes, Anheuser-Busch, Brown-Forman, Constellation Brands, District of Columbia Association of Beverage Alcohol Wholesalers, Enterprise Rent-A-Car, Foundation for Advancing Alcohol Responsibility, Giant Food, Glory Days Grill, Kendall-Jackson, Lyft, Molson Coors Beverage Company, New Belgium Brewing, Restaurant Association Metropolitan Washington and the Washington Area New Automobile Dealers Association. In addition, WRAP’s 2021 Public Partner SoberRide® Sponsors include the District of Columbia Department of Transportation, Maryland Department of Transportation Motor Vehicle Administration’s Highway Safety Office and the Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles.

Since 1991, WRAP’s SoberRide® program has provided 81,184 free safe rides home to would-be drunk drivers in the Greater Washington area.

Founded in 1982, the nonprofit [501(c)(3)] Washington Regional Alcohol Program (WRAP) is a coalition of diverse interests 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.

More information about WRAP’s SoberRide® initiative can be found at www.soberride.com.