Safe habits are encouraged when celebrating New Year’s

Published 6:02 am Saturday, December 31, 2016

As the countdown reaches zero Saturday night, millions across the world will be celebrating 2017.
The Tennessee Highway Patrol, along with several police departments across the state, will hit the ground running New Year’s Eve and early New Year’s Day to help deter drunk drivers across the state.
When heading out to celebrate the event, Travis Eggers with Doe River Taxi, encourages individuals to stay safe and think smart before getting into trouble.
“There’s some things you can only do once,” Eggers said about people who get behind the wheel of the vehicle drunk. “We’re here to make sure that a person can safely make it back home to their family. Think ahead before going out and remember to have a plan for when you need to make it back home.
“It is a tough time of the year,” Eggers continued. “There’s times people will be hard to deal with, call for a cab and not be available. I would just encourage people, again, plan ahead and make sure they take the necessary steps to make it back home to their loved ones and know we’re here if they need a ride.”
Community members that are looking for a ride after celebrating New Year’s can contact Doe River Taxi at (423) 297-1550.
The issue of being safe on the road is stressed even more this year with more than 103 million taking part in travel during the year-end holidays, according to Stephanie Milani with AAA – The Auto Club Group. AAA’s year-end holiday force lasts from Dec. 23 to Jan. 2 and added that over 2 million motorists in the state were expected to drive more than 50 miles during this time of the year.
“This will be the most-traveled year-end holiday season on record, particularly for those who drive,” Joseph J. Richardson Jr., President and CEO, AAA – The Auto Club Group, said in a statement to the Elizabethton Star.
AAA – The Auto Club Group is offering “Tow to Go,” a partnership with Budweiser, in Tennessee, Florida, Georgia and select portions of New England once again this year to help individuals that drove to an event and are too intoxicated to drive home.
Tow to Go is currently in effect in the state and will last until Monday, Jan. 2. According to AAA, since the program’s inception in 1998, Tow to Go has “safely removed more than 24,000 impaired drivers from the road.”
The program allows a confidential local ride from an AAA tow truck. The driver will tow the driver and vehicle within a 10-mile radius to a safe location — free of charge to AAA and non-AAA members.
For more information or to utilize the option, call (855) 286-9246.

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