The next time you order a carry out from D.P. Dough, you might also find a flyer that lists the monetary consequences of driving a vehicle while impaired.
An Athens business is partnering with local police and partly paying for a campaign to promote safe driving, as Ohio University’s spring break nears on March 2.
D.P. Dough printed 5,000 flyers — about a $950 printing cost to the business. Ohio University Police Department designed the flyers and took the photographs used in the pamphlet but how much that cost wasn’t available as of press time.
The flyers contain information about the consequences of operating a vehicle while impaired, also known as an OVI.
The pamphlet will also list the monetary consequences of OVIs, including minimum to maximum fines, court costs, attorney fees and blood and breath testing fees. The total average cost of a first-time OVI in Ohio would be between $7,100 to $10,150, according to the flyer.
Athens D.P. Dough will distribute the flyers with each pickup and delivery order and posters will be displayed at various on-campus locations, including campus residence halls. Table tents with the same information will also be on tables in dining halls.
“We thought it was important to get the message out there before (students) leave,” OUPD’s Lt. Eric Hoskinson said.
The idea was suggested Fall Semester by Mark Crumpton, former CEO of D.P. Dough.
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“If it cost us $1,500 or $2,000 and one person read this and decided they weren’t willing to drink and drive, the campaign was well worth it,” Hoskinson said.
CEO of D.P. Dough Franchising Matt Crumpton said a campaign educating the risks and costs of drunk driving is a great way to deter OVIs.
“We have so many drivers who are out late at night and see all kinds of craziness on the road,” Crumpton said. “But the one thing our drivers should never see is a drunk driver. We fully support the mission of OUPD to eradicate drunk driving from our community.”
In 2013, the Ohio State Highway Patrol saw 309 OVI-related fatal traffic crashes in Ohio, according to the department’s operational report. Three hundred forty-one people were killed in those fatal crashes.
OSHP troopers made 24,128 OVI arrests in 2013.
Carson Wagner, an assistant professor in the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, said the campaign was a good idea, but said the flyer misses an opportunity to spin the message in a positive way.
Wagner said D.P. Dough could have reached the same message by saying what delivery services could do to prevent drunk driving by making sure those under the influence stay off the road.
@JoshuaLim93
jl951613@ohio.edu
