Lowering the frequency of drunk driving in the area surrounding Salisbury University, Saferide is a student-led organization that provides students safe transportation from Thursday to Sunday every week. Since the service became available to the SU community in 1993, students have taken advantage of free rides back to their place of residence in times of need. 

Salisbury University, considered a “party school” by many, houses a student population that is prone to weekend party hopping, which tends to involve drinking alcohol, smoking marijuana and other such activities. Although not everyone who uses Saferide is a partier, those who benefit most from the service are students who would otherwise be unsafe operating a vehicle or walking home. 

Franklin Griffin, a SU senior majoring in Photography, is the Director of Community Relations for Saferide and has been a part of the organization since their freshman year of college.

“I do think there would be more drunk driving, with people leaving parties or going to parties, which is very unsafe and then I know that there’s a lot of people, especially around Cookout, that just walk across the street in the middle of the night without looking,” they said. “If there’s people under the influence [who are] driving, they’re less likely to see them, so it’s more dangerous for pedestrians as well.”

“I do think [that] without Saferide, it would just be an overall increase of dangerous roads at night.”

The service Saferide offers to the community is extremely popular among the student body, making it one of the most well known and most highly used organizations on campus.

Olivia Davis, a SU junior majoring in Accounting, has used Saferide on many occasions for the convenient, cost-free transportation it provides. Several members of her sorority also take advantage of the service.

“Every experience I’ve had with Saferide is pretty good: we call, they come, they pick us up,” she said. “It’s pretty positive, they take you, ask you where you want to go, they’ll even go out of their way to make sure that you’re okay and they’re very friendly on the ride.”

Davis appreciates Saferide because the organization provides an opportunity to arrive home safely without paying for an uber or, worse, driving with somebody under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

“I feel like we’d be less safe, especially with us knowing the area of Salisbury, like with the Kappa shooting and other things going on,” Davis said. “It’s a nice way to have a safe way, so girls aren’t walking home at [around] 3:00 A.M., guys too, and it also lowers the risk of drunk driving, because obviously that’s a big safety issue for college students.”

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By COLIN McEVERS

Editor in Chief

Featured image courtesy of Colin McEvers