During the Colorado Department of Transportation's (CDOT) heightened enforcement periods in 2021, 4,532 DUI arrests were made in Colorado. With more and more Coloradans mixing alcohol with cannabis or other drugs, marijuana-alone citations increased from 6.3% in 2014 to 8.7% in 2020, while marijuana-in-combination with alcohol or other drugs increased from 5.7% of citations in 2014 to 22.7% in 2020.
CDOT received a grant from GHSA, ride-hailing company Lyft and Responsibility.org to prevent impaired driving during the 2022 Holiday season. With the funding, CDOT launched their first “Nothing Uglier than a DUI” ugly holiday sweater campaign.
CDOT offered $10 ride credits across Colorado to curb impaired driving by offering safe and sober rides during the holiday season through their “Nothing Uglier than a DUI” campaign. The campaign asked Coloradans to show their holiday spirit by sporting seasonal sweaters and keeping safety at the forefront of all festivities. Individuals who followed CDOT on Facebook were entered into a contest to win a custom ugly holiday sweater by engaging with one of CDOT’s promotional posts.
CDOT also hosted a pop-up event on December 16 at Miracle at Union Station and gave out a select number of $10 Lyft ride credit codes to patrons.
With funds remaining, CDOT provided $10 ride credits across Colorado for the 2023 Super Bowl and St. Patrick’s Day holiday. CDOT also hosted a pop-up event at Jack Quinn’s Irish Pub in Colorado Springs, offering ride credit passes encouraging bargoers to plan a sober ride during the festive weekend.
With roughly 75% of codes claimed, CDOT provided a total of 1,044 rides with this grant funding. Social media and earned media also resulted in 3,218,744 impressions statewide. Through collaboration with local business, CDOT fostered community relationships through providing two pop-up events and encourages other SHSOs to do the same when providing ride-hailing promotions. The feedback from the community was collectively positive, with many thankful for the opportunity to use the Lyft ride credit for a safe ride home.