Uber offers credits for holiday rides

The ride service company Uber is partnering with the New Mexico Department of Transportation and the Governors Highway Safety Association to provide safe rides for passengers during the holiday season.

Riders can use the code “ENDWI2021” to receive a $15 Uber credit, funded by a grant from the association, between Tuesday and Jan. 3, according to a Department of Transportation news release.

The credit does not include a tip.

New Mexico is one of five states sharing $95,000 in grant funds from the Governors Highway Safety Association to cover traffic safety initiatives over the holidays. The program is now in its fourth year.

In New Mexico, the Uber credits will be offered anywhere in the state where Uber drivers are operating.

“Holiday events coincide with an increase in alcohol related crashes, but the danger has gone up significantly over the past year,” state Transportation Secretary Mike Sandoval said in a news release. “Drunk and drug-impaired driving increased during the pandemic and as parties and gatherings resume, there are even more opportunities for impaired driving this holiday season. There is no excuse for driving under the influence. Get a safe ride home.”

According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly 30 people die in drunken-driving crashes every day in the U.S. In New Mexico, 100 people have been killed in alcohol-related crashes so far this year.

From mid-November through New Year’s Day, the state also will conduct a “Winter Superblitz” enforcement operation, combined with a radio, television and social media ad campaign and outdoor messages in both English and Spanish.