MADD, Cell-Phone Firm Join Forces to Fight DWI January 9, 1998
News Feature
A cellular-phone company has joined with Mothers Against Drunk Driving in a multifaceted approach to prevent drunk and impaired driving that could be repeated by other drunk-driving groups nationally. Newtown, Pa.-based Comcast Cellular Communications, Inc., is lending its corporate and technological support to a Bucks County coalition of concerned parents, government officials, legislators and others working to prevent drunk driving. Comcast recently helped publicize the annual "Lights On for Life Day," which memorializes drunk-driving victims by urging drivers to keep their headlights on throughout the day on Dec. 19.
Moreover, Comcast has donated wireless phones to 12 local MADD chapters to help with DWI prevention efforts, and is encouraging drivers to use their wireless phones to report suspected drunk drivers. Bucks County Highway Safety director Robert H. Johns says motorists should use their cell phones to call 911 with the license-plate number, location and vehicle description of suspected drunk drivers. "Safety is everyone's responsibility, and with so many people using wireless phones today, there's no reason why drunk drivers cannot be stopped before they hurt themselves or others," said Johns.
The alliance between drunk-driving prevention and the cellular phone industry makes sense, and seems ripe for replication in other communities around the country. There's no downside for the cellular companies, which get to promote the use of their products for a good cause while at the same time burnishing their image as a responsible corporate citizen in a highly competitive market. It's also an industry that in the past has faced its own highway-safety concerns, such as charges that cell-phone users get into more accidents. "We've been very involved in safety issues for many years, and support the use of wireless phones as tools to prevent impaired individuals from hurting others," said Melissa Nichols, vice president of corporate communications.
Comcast also is sponsoring an interactive safety presentation for high-school driving classes, called "Road Smarts."
Comcast Cellular Communications: 610-995-3766.
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