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South Florida, where Super Bowl XLIV is being held this year is similar in many ways to Houston, Texas in that people often drive because they can not count on their local public transportation. I remember when I first moved from Chicago, Illinois to Miami, Florida when I was a young boy and was not able to do half the things I was use to doing upon my move since my new city did not have reliable public transportation. This meant I was unable to take the train to a baseball game during the summer months, not that South Florida had a baseball team at the time. As a child I had to really on my legs and my bike if I wanted to do anything outside my neighborhood. Despite the inconvenience, I thought it was great since the brutal winter months of Chicago were behind me .
This inconvenience however, leads to serious consequences if someone does not take precautions in respect to drinking and driving. I firmly believe if we had reliable public transportation in Houston, Texas our DWI arrests would decrease. Take into account the Washington Avenue area, the new place to go for young professional to "hang out" and drink. If someone wants to go this area to meet up with friends they must drive or get a taxi that is probably makes their night cost twice as much. Given the alternative, the Houston driver decides that he/she will monitor what they drink instead of incurring the cab cost. The Houston drinker must be more conscious of their alcoholic intake because they are the one that are likely will be doing the driving and the police have a close to zero tolerance for anyone that drinks and drives whether or not they are intoxicated. Unlike other major cities in the United States we do not have the fall back of public transportation in Houston.
Miami, Florida is a tourist attraction year round because of its tropical weather and beautiful beaches, but still does not provide the reliable public transportation for its visitors. I have a suspicion that a few people will be drinking during the Super Bowl festivities that will be ongoing throughout the week. Even if they are only attending the game they are unlikely to be staying near stadium since it is not located in a tourist area. Therefore, the majority of tourists will be driving. It is not a stretch that when a destination increases by over 250,000 people that are drinking and driving that DWI arrests are going to increase.
Today is Super Bowl Sunday. The Indianapolis Colts and Peyton Manning take on Drew Brees and the New Orleans Saints. The day has become an American holiday except no one gets the day off on Monday. I'd like to propose the movement to make the day after the Super Bowl an official holiday. Everyone really enjoys themselves on Sunday and needs a day of recovery. Lets be honest, their isn't a whole lot of workforce production the day after the Super Bowl. Who would really be opposed to making it a holiday?.jpg)
