Spring Break
Letter: Designated Driver program provides incentives for responsible behavior
Issue date: 10/9/08 Section: Editorial/Opinion
10/09/08 - To the Cigar,
One of the most crucial threats to college students' safety is drunken driving.
On average, a drunken driver kills someone every 40 minutes.
In 2007 alone, 12,998 people died in drunken driving related crashes.
Three out of 10 Americans will be involved in a drunken driving crash in their lifetime. Why should we care about this?
It affects us.
Living on a college campus alone puts college students more in danger of drunken driving - driving to and from parties or the bar at night, our safety may be in jeopardy.
Therefore, I believe it is essential to have designated drivers every single time students are drinking.
How do you do this?
Simply plan ahead.
Individuals and communities alike need to reach out in order to take action against this life threatening crime. Toyota - Scion of Newport will have a booth in Oktoberfest this weekend (Oct. 11 to 13) that will run a Designated Driver program.
While this program does not provide designated drivers, it will encourage them and reward them with gift bags, including a shirt designed by University of Rhode Island students. Programs such as these enable the community to reach out and encourage smart decisions, permitting increased safety around campus, and preventing concerns of drunken driving that come hand in hand with festivals such as Oktoberfest.
So don't put yourself at risk. Don't become one of the statistics. Instead, fight against them, and do something to stop it.
(Visit www.newportfestivals.com/oktoberfest or www.toyotaofnewport.com for more details.)
Pascal Salvatore
One of the most crucial threats to college students' safety is drunken driving.
On average, a drunken driver kills someone every 40 minutes.
In 2007 alone, 12,998 people died in drunken driving related crashes.
Three out of 10 Americans will be involved in a drunken driving crash in their lifetime. Why should we care about this?
It affects us.
Living on a college campus alone puts college students more in danger of drunken driving - driving to and from parties or the bar at night, our safety may be in jeopardy.
Therefore, I believe it is essential to have designated drivers every single time students are drinking.
How do you do this?
Simply plan ahead.
Individuals and communities alike need to reach out in order to take action against this life threatening crime. Toyota - Scion of Newport will have a booth in Oktoberfest this weekend (Oct. 11 to 13) that will run a Designated Driver program.
While this program does not provide designated drivers, it will encourage them and reward them with gift bags, including a shirt designed by University of Rhode Island students. Programs such as these enable the community to reach out and encourage smart decisions, permitting increased safety around campus, and preventing concerns of drunken driving that come hand in hand with festivals such as Oktoberfest.
So don't put yourself at risk. Don't become one of the statistics. Instead, fight against them, and do something to stop it.
(Visit www.newportfestivals.com/oktoberfest or www.toyotaofnewport.com for more details.)
Pascal Salvatore
