AAA urges motorists to celebrate safely this holiday season by following some simple safe driving tips.
- At social events, designate a non-drinking driver who can get everyone home safely.
- Call a friend or family member for a ride if you’ve been drinking.
- Set up a ride-sharing app on your phone for easy access if you have had too much to drink.
- Keep a taxi number in your cell phone call list to call for a ride home.
- As a party host, offer a variety of non-alcoholic drink alternatives, provide a gift to guests who volunteer to be designated drivers and arrange transportation through programs, such as Tispy Tow, for guests who have been drinking.
- Don’t let friends drive drunk.
While Christmas and New Year’s is a special time to connect with friends and family, it is also one of the deadliest times for alcohol related traffic crashes and fatalities, according to a news release from AAA.
They say drinking drivers frequently fail to seek and get alternative ways to get home because they are concerned about retrieving their vehicle, the expense of taxis and the inconvenience of alternative transportation.
As a part of the overall community effort to decrease DUI fatalities, AAA Tidewater is offering the Tipsy Tow service in Hampton Roads until Jan. 1 at 6 a.m.
The goal of the program is to provide a safe alternative to drinking and driving on area roads, according to AAA.
- Services limited to the Greater Hampton Roads area including Virginia Beach, Norfolk, Portsmouth, Chesapeake, Suffolk, Newport News, Hampton, Poquoson, Yorktown and Williamsburg
- Free and available to both AAA members and non-members
- The AAA tow truck takes the vehicle and the driver home
Tipsy Tow Service Area(s):
- Phone Number: 800-AAA-HELP
For callers in the Greater Hampton Roads Area, callers simply tell the dispatcher, “I need a Tipsy Tow,” to receive both the free tow and ride home.
Callers need to keep in mind that the service excludes rides for passengers, is restricted to a one-way, one-time ride for the driver, and the destination is limited to the driver’s residence.
Reservations are not accepted, and the tows are available within the greater Hampton Roads area.
The service is provided free of charge to prevent alcohol-related car crashes.
Learn more about AAA here.
