No DUI arrests made on NYE

Friday, January 2, 2015
A Cab owner David Evens was dressed to impress as he spent his New Year's Eve giving Putnam County residents a safe ride home.

Putnam County residents celebrated New Year's Eve safely as the local law enforcement personnel reported no arrests were made for driving under the influence.

According to Putnam County Sheriff Scott Stockton the Putnam County Jail was noticeably empty when he arrived for his first official day on Thursday, something he attributes to Operation Safe Ride, which was coordinated for the first time this year by Moore's Bar, Felling and Felling Law Office and A Cab.

"The day after the event was sponsored I went to the (Putnam County) Jail first thing in the morning to find out how many arrests were made," Stockton explained. "There were no drivers arrested for impaired driving in Putnam County. I think the initiative helped considerably along with people just using good judgment. I applaud the Fellings and Moore's Bar for providing that service."

The Greencastle Police Department also noticed a decline in unsafe driving during what is typically known as one of the most celebrated nights of the year nationwide.

Capt. Chris Jones stated that the Greencastle Police Department was out with a full staff making traffic stops during the evening and did not encounter anyone intoxicated behind the wheel.

"The cars we did stop that had been drinking all had designated drivers, which is what we want," Jones said. "Having worked several New Year's Eves this was unusual. Vehicular traffic was noticeably down from previous years."

A total of 175 patrons were given a safe ride by A Cab throughout the evening. A Cab not only offered free rides home from Moore's Bar, which co-sponsored the event along with the Fellings, but from anywhere in Greencastle, from 6 p.m. until 4 a.m.

"Overall for us, calls for service were down from previous years, so I think people were overall being good," Jones added. "I know A Cab was all over the place that night and they transported over 170 people to various locations. I would say, A Cab made a huge impact on our local streets. Of course the citizens were responsible enough to participate and not attempt to drive home as well."

A Cab owner David Evens noted that the longest wait time for a ride was just a mere 20 minutes, which the largest amount of calls coming in between 12:30-1:30 a.m.

"We went all over the county, including to Bainbridge and Cloverdale," Evens said. "People were very generous taking care of my drivers who basically worked the night for tips. It was just awesome. We drove nearly 800 miles during the evening. I would really say it was a huge success. Moore's Bar noted that there were all kinds of brand new faces during its event, I imagine we took at least 40 patrons there during the evening."

Evens noted that due to the success of Operation Safe Ride, he has already begun planning for St. Patrick's Day, in hopes of once again offering the Putnam County community a safe ride home.

"I'm already working on the next one, which will be St. Patrick's Day," Evens said. "I'm working now to try and figure out what we can do better to serve the community."

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  • Thank you Dave, Lisa, and Marcy for being professional and prompt NYE. ACab has been needed in this town for a long time!

    -- Posted by townielove on Sat, Jan 3, 2015, at 5:03 AM
  • Great job! Also think of Valentines Day, I believe it is a Sat night. This service is a blessing for Greencastle.

    -- Posted by dcsaiht on Sat, Jan 3, 2015, at 3:59 PM
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