Drunk Driving On New Year’s Eve Is Forcing Cities To Offer Free Public Transportation

Photo: Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times (Getty Images)

Public transportation agencies from sea to shining sea are allowing revelers to head out and come home on New Year’s Eve for free. Chicago, Los Angeles, and San Francisco are among the major cities in the United States that are offering free rides. However, these initiatives were implemented because of how deadly drunk driving on New Year’s Eve has become. Molson-Coors, a multi-national brewing company, sponsors free rides programs in multiple cities.

The odds are that if someone is heading out to a party on New Year’s Eve, they’re likely going to be drinking alcohol. If they drove there, they are probably going to drive back no matter what. According to the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration, there were 209 drunk driving-related deaths over the 2020 holiday period. The easiest way to reduce the chance of someone getting behind the wheel drunk is to have fewer people driving.

The premise is simple for transit agencies. At a set time on December 31, public transportation is free until the final service of the night. That time will be 9:00 p.m. for the Metro in Los Angeles and 10:00 p.m. for the L in Chicago. For riders, there are no strings attached. You just get on and go where you want to go.

While it would be fantastic if public transportation were just free all of the time, most of these free rides programs are only possible due to corporate sponsorship. The Miller Brewing Company started its Miller Lite Free Rides partnership with the Milwaukee County Transit System in 1988. The program has expanded to Charlotte, Chicago, Dallas, Denver, Phoenix and Minneapolis-St. Paul with different MolsonCoors beers as the title sponsor.

While it might be a factor behind drunk driving, don’t hesitate to take advantage of a brewery-backed free ride this weekend if available in your area.