How to Really Stop Drunk Driving in Miami

I had a fantastic Memorial Day weekend going out on Not The Beach. Why I avoided the beach is a topic we beat to death here at MiamiBeach411.com, so instead I will discuss another topic that gets people’s collective panties in a massive bunch: Drunk Driving.

NO GOOD DEED GOES UNPUNISHED

I say my weekend was sooo fantastic because I spent the better part of Saturday afternoon driving around in the rain looking for a car that wasn’t there.  A friend of mine had had a few too many while celebrating in Brickell and decided to get a ride home with a slightly-less-intoxicated friend. A wise, responsible decision, one might say, until the next day when she arrived at the place her used to be and it was not there.

Had it been stolen by a group of reckless vandals? Had she, in a drunken haze, forgotten where she had parked? No, oh no. My friend’s responsible decision to not drive home drunk was rewarded with a trip to the impound lot courtesy of the City of Miami Police.

As I drove her around in circles while she called 4 different towing companies to locate her car, all I could tell her is “This is why I drink and Drive.”

MAYBE IF IT DIDN’T COST ME $350 TO GET MY CAR OUT

Now please, spare me the statistics. I’ve heard them all more times than I’ve heard the theme from “Golden Girls.” I know it’s dangerous. I know it’s stupid. I know I could get somebody killed. But I also know that while the good people at M.A.D.D. love to tell everyone not to drink and drive, they don’t bother telling the cops not to tow the drunk person’s car.

And it’s not just the towing, either. Taxi drivers don’t help the problem by charging exorbitant rates to get from South Beach to ANYWHERE across the causeway. Even if your driving might put lives in danger.  If I’m staring a $50 cab ride in the face when I want to get back to Pinecrest from South Beach, chances are I’m going to press my luck on the highway. This may not be the wisest decision, but if you can’t afford another $50 after a long night out, it makes a lot of sense.

A SOLUTION THAT MIGHT ACTUALLY WORK

I know there are non-profit organizations that try to develop safe-ride systems to eliminate the obstacles to not driving home. But these organizations are poorly promoted and not widely-used. The City, I believe, has too much vested interest in towing and taxi revenues to ever let a service like this become popular in a liquor-soaked town like Miami.

If we were really serious about eliminating drunk driving, the tow-home would be a city-sponsored program. And it would be widely publicized.  The City would also not allow tow away zones that begin before noon. Like 24-hour ones, obviously, would still exist, but none of these “Parking Only Between 8 PM and 8 AM” areas.  And they would also require taxis to take city-sponsored vouchers for cab rides home for the intoxicated.

I’m not saying it’s the City’s responsibility to get drunk people home. I’m just saying if we’re serious about eliminating drunk driving, this is the way to go.  Stiffer penalties aren’t working. The cops have been “cracking down” since 1986 and still the amount of times one can drink and drive without being caught so far outweigh the chances of being pulled over, even people who have gotten DUIs continue to do it. But if you take away any sane advantage to getting behind the wheel when you are drunk, then it will stop. Otherwise, stop judging me when I take a shot and leave the bar, or pay for my taxi and my towing.

 

 

Related Categories: Miami: Local News, About the Author: Matt Meltzer is a featured columnist at Miami Beach 411. See more articles by Matt Meltzer. See more articles by Matt Meltzer Was This Post Helpful? Please Share It With Others! Tweet

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"How to Really Stop Drunk Driving in Miami"

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