Minnesota businesses are trying to help cut down on the number of people who drive drunk during the holiday season by letting patrons know that they are welcome to leave their cars overnight in their parking lots to avoid getting behind the wheel after a night of drinking.
The Thank You Project is designed to let individuals know that they have a safe place to leave their car overnight and that their decision not to drive is appreciated by others. During the project, businesses will be leaving a short message on vehicles left in their parking lot over night, and the same message may also be posted near the exits of their establishments. It reads:
“Thank you for deciding not to drink and drive. Your life and the lives of others depend on making the right choice.”
One establishment that will be participating is The Happy Gnome in St. Paul.
“It’s way more valuable to us for our customers to be safe than to have an open parking space at our establishment,” said Emily Brink, operations manager at The Happy Gnome.
DUI Enforcement Extended
If the thank you program isn’t enough to get you to leave your car and get a sober ride home, maybe this will be. Minnesota police said they plan to extend the extra DUI enforcement through the end of the year after noticing success with the program during the extended Thanksgiving weekend.
The Minnesota Department of Public Safety announced that more than 300 agencies across the state will be conducting extra DWI patrols throughout December to ensure everyone has a safe holiday season. The extra patrols will be conducted on weekends through the end of the year.
“It just takes that one moment, that one time to shatter a life forever,” said Donna Berger, Office of Traffic Safety director. “If you are truly someone’s friend or a family member of someone who is impaired, you won’t let them get behind the wheel this holiday season.”
Hopefully drivers use caution when it comes to drinking and driving during the holidays, and history suggests they have been making smarter choices. In 2015, the months of November (1,931) and December (1,876) were the two months with the lowest DUI numbers of the year. Considering that businesses and police are increasing their efforts to keep inebriated drivers off the road, there’s no reason to think 2016 can’t follow a similar pattern.
