Who Is Your Designated Driver This Holiday Weekend

It's a question that stopped me in my tracks.

Who will be my designated driver this weekend?

This weekend is going to be the first weekend, not just in the months since the pandemic, but the first weekend in almost 20 years that my best friend since high school and I have had to just hang out together sans husbands or kids. It's going to be a phenomenal and fun weekend! We've planned our destination, our lodging, even our outfits. Our restaurant reservations are made for Friday, Saturday, and Sunday night. We thought we had planned everything to a tee, but not once in the weeks leading up to our 'Girls Weekend Trip' have we talked about who our designated driver is going to be.

Turns out that's part of a bigger and deadly problem for Texans in particular.

We're failing to plan ahead when it comes to designating a driver or calling an Uber or cab after drinking. Texas is leading in alcohol-related crashes in the United States because of it.

There are just the two of us this weekend and now that I'm thinking about a designated driver, I realize where we are going, Ubers aren't likely to be in abundance. In fact, while I'm writing this, I realize I'm not even sure if there is a cab service where we are going either. But I better figure it out because these statistics are startling.

According to TxDot.com during last year's Labor Day Weekend, there were 382 crashes involving drivers under the influence of alcohol. Those crashes seriously injured 55 people and sadly killed 12 others.

12 deaths in a single weekend due to drunk driving.

According to MADD, in their riveting and heartbreaking report presented by Click2Houston, Texas has the most drunk driving fatalities in the entire United States of America. And the Texas Department of Transportation says every 20 minutes someone on a Texas roadway is injured or killed in an accident involving alcohol on a daily basis.

Join the TxDot initiative, "Plan While You Can,' a campaign that aims to save lives and reduce preventable crashes by reminding drivers to make a plan for a sober ride if they are drinking alcohol.

Plan ahead. Who is going to be YOUR designated driver this weekend? I've decided to be the designated driver this weekend. It's just not worth the risk otherwise.

Uber and Lyft are available in Victoria! Just download their apps. What about renting a limousine? Elegant Limo has limousines for rent this weekend. 361.894.5466

Do you know of other driving services in Victoria we could add to the list here? Let us know on our app or Facebook pages. Let's all work together to keep each other and our families safe from intoxicated driving.