St. Patrick's Day Sober Rides Provide Free Lifts In NoVA, DC

VIRGINIA/DC — The SoberRide program will be available on St. Patrick’s Day for people out partying and consuming alcohol in Northern Virginia and D.C.

The program, offered by the nonprofit Washington Regional Alcohol Program, will be in operation from 4 p.m. Thursday, March 17 to 4 a.m. Friday, March 18.

During SoberRide's hours of operation, area residents age 21 and older celebrating with alcohol may download the Lyft app to their phones, then enter a SoberRide code in the app's "Promo" section to receive their no cost — up to $15 — ride home. Users are financially responsible for anything ride over $15.

The Cinco de Mayo SoberRide promo code will be posted at 3 p.m. Thursday on www.SoberRide.com and can be used through 4 a.m. Friday.

SoberRide is offered throughout Lyft's Washington, D.C. coverage area, which includes all or parts of the District of Columbia and Arlington, Fairfax, Loudoun and Prince William counties.

Since 1991, WRAP's SoberRide program has provided more than 80,000 free safe rides home to would-be drunk drivers in the D.C. area. The nonprofit also offers its SoberRide program on Independence Day, Halloween, the winter holidays and St. Patrick's Day.

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According to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, during the 2020 St. Patrick’s Day weekend, from 6 p.m. March 16 to 5:59 a.m. March 18, more than a third of traffic crash fatalities involved a drunk driver. In fact, from 2016 to 2020, a total of 287 lives were lost in impaired-driving crashes during the St. Patrick’s Day period nationwide.

“Don’t let your first celebration of the season be your last. St. Patrick’s Day can be a fun time to have a pint with a pal, but remember getting behind the wheel when intoxicated is no way to celebrate," Colonel Gary T. Settle, Virginia State Police Superintendent, said in a statement Tuesday. "Driving drunk is a choice — a choice with deadly consequences for you, your passengers and every other motorist sharing the road with you.”

The Virginia State Police urged Virginians to party on St. Patrick's Day with a plan:

• Ensure you have a designated sober driver, a plan to use public transportation or a ride-share service like the SoberRide program before any drinking begins.
• Be honest with yourself and know that even if you only plan on having one drink, you should plan on having a designated driver.
• If you see a drunk driver on the road, pull over safely and dial #77 on a cell phone or call 911.
• If you know someone who has been drinking and is about to drive, take the keys and make arrangements to get them home safely.

During St. Patrick’s Day, as well as during the traditional spring break season, the Virginia State Police will be participating in Operation C.A.R.E., the Crash Awareness and Reduction Effort. The state-sponsored, national program incorporates a nine-day statistical counting period that begins at 12:01 a.m., March 12 and concludes at midnight on March 20.