New Year Party, New Travel Option

By Riordan Frost, Policy Associate, December 30, 2011 at 11:00 am

It would be pointless to tell people not to drink on New Year's Eve: it is a cultural night of revelry for ringing in the new year. Let's focus then on celebrating safely, especially when it comes to smart transportation choices. To that end, transit in the Twin Cities will be free from 6 p.m. until the last scheduled trip this Saturday.

As with other free transit nights (like St. Patrick's Day), this one is brought to us by an alcoholic beverage company. The release from Metro Transit gives a nod to the night's sponsor, Miller Lite, and also provides a list of routes with service after midnight—like the particularly user-friendly Hiawatha light rail, which is open past 1 a.m.

If you're celebrating in the Twin Cities, you can easily plan ahead using either Metro Transit's trip planner or Google's transit directions, which are both very easy to use. If you're coming in from outside the cities, using a park-and-ride can help you avoid the hassle of parking and the hectic urban reveler traffic, with other drivers possibly making less safe choices than you. In some states, you could even drive to your destination and then rely on AAA to tow you home with their Tipsy Tow service, but Minnesota isn't (yet) one of those states.

If driving is your means of transportation on Saturday night, you probably shouldn't drink. According to the Minnesota Department of Public Safety, one-third of the state's road fatalities are the result of alcohol-related crashes. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving, that statistic puts Minnesota at 27th in the nation (50th going to North Dakota, with 44% of road fatalities being the result of alcohol-related crashes). The aforementioned DPS release also details the increased enforcement during the month of December, which has brought 8,500 more hours of DWI enforcement to Minnesota, adding to the long list of reasons to drive safe and sober on Saturday.

From all of us at Minnesota 2020: safe travels, and a Happy New Year!

Posted in Transportation | Related Topics: Community Safety  Busing  Road Safety