Don’t Drink & Drive
When it’s late and you’ve been out drinking with friends, the best thing to do at the end of the night is to call a cab. Don’t drive yourself home. In many cities in the country, however, Uber has become the number one ridesharing app and is a common way of getting around after a few too many drinks. The idea is that you can get a ride from someone else using their own vehicle to pick you up at your destination and drop you off wherever you need to go and the payment is all handled on your phone. The expectation, however, is that your Uber driver is sober… Right?
Well for Arlene Mendez, that wasn’t the case. She was headed over to her friend’s house to hang out and called an Uber driver. Juan Pablo Garcia, 22, was speeding over 80 mph through the city streets. He eventually hit another vehicle and his car flipped. Bystanders were able to pull Mendez from the mangled car. When the police arrived, they administered a breathalyzer and field sobriety tests, which the driver failed. Mendez states that she was “really mad, because I would have lost my life!” She was trying to be safe. She got Uber because she was trying to do the right thing. Uber has since barred this driver from ever using the app again, and he was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence. If you’re driving late at night, be very watchful of other drivers. Even if you’re not drinking yourself, you never know who may be behind the wheel of the other cars on the road.