RADD, State of Calif. 'Cal Coalition' Launches Music-Driven Campaign to Reduce Impaired Driving

RADD, State of Calif. 'Cal Coalition' Launches Music-Driven Campaign to Reduce Impaired Driving

RADD, California Government Agencies, Brewers Coors and Miller, California Auto Clubs, American Federation of Musicians and MP3tunes.com Join Forces to Reward 'Designated Drivers' and Honor Responsible Retailers Through the 2nd Annual 'What's the Plan? Figure It Out!' Campaign Targeting Ages 21-34

STUDIO CITY, Calif., Dec. 18 /PRNewswire/ -- "What's your plan to avoid driving drunk this winter?"

RADD celebrity messengers and top bartenders from Universal Studios Hollywood CityWalk teamed up to spotlight RADD's "What's The Plan? Figure It Out!" winter campaign to remind adults to plan ahead long before everyone shows up at the party in their own car.

How do you party responsibly? Take turns at the wheel as a designated driver. Share a cab. Hop on the train. Or just stay put. Sleep at the host's house. For a festive change, book a room or a limo. Motorcycle riders are the designated driver, so "decide before you ride" is the best advice.

The upbeat "What's the Plan? Figure It Out!" California campaign pairs RADD's national "Friends Don't Let Friends Drive Drunk" message of friends watching out for each other, with retail rewards from California businesses to encourage adults to be responsible. The winter-long campaign runs through Super Sunday, February 4, 2007.

Special California PSAs taped by national RADD celebrity messengers were released today by recording artists John Ondrasik of Five for Fighting and Sugarland (both of whom also appear on the retail point-of-sale materials), and Sammy Hagar, Josh Kelley, and Emily Richards, actor Brandon Routh, and NASCAR drivers Carl Edwards, Jamie McMurray, Erik Darnell and David Ragan.

Diverse campaign partners are RADD: The Entertainment Industry's Voice for Road Safety, the State of California, colleges, restaurants, bars, brewers, professional musicians, the Auto Club and a high tech entertainment company, joining forces as the RADD California Coalition to promote real-world solutions to driving drunk and reward adults for using them.

Further raising the volume, the American Federation of Musicians is encouraging its professional musician members to give a "Who's driving?" message to fans during live performances.

State partners co-funding and actively supporting the campaign are the ABC, CHP, Caltrans, DMV, Office of Traffic Safety and their parent entity, the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency, which co-chairs the RADD California Coalition with RADD.

While RADD celebrities work the airwaves and stages, reminding adults to be responsible, RADD California Coalition members are reaching out to retailers.

The Coalition's call to action for the business community is to join now at www.radd.org.

Restaurants, bars, clubs, convenience/package stores, fast food, hotels and lifestyle merchants are already signed on, but more are needed, especially in Northern California and college communities throughout the state.

Universal Studios Hollywood CityWalk is aboard. With the Insurance Information Network of California (IINC) and RADD, CityWalk hosted a "Battle of the Bartenders" to make the best non-alcoholic "mocktails" and issued a challenge to other hot hospitality centers throughout the state to sign up for RADD's retail rewards campaign.

CityWalk boasts 10 clubs offering RADD rewards to designated drivers, Bubba Gump Shrimp Co., Buca Di Beppo, Cafe Tu Tu Tango, Camacho's Cantina, Daily Grill, Hard Rock Cafe, Saddle Ranch Chop House, Shanghai and Mein, Wasabi at CityWalk, and Wolfgang Puck Cafe.

In addition to the CityWalk venues, RADD's retail rewards database at www.radd.org also includes Circle K stores statewide and online music site MP3tunes.com; Hollywood's Safari Sam's; Laguna Beach's Mozambique Restaurant and Coastal Lounge; The Palm in Sacramento; San Francisco's Ruby Skye; a Burger King in Santa Ana; and motorcycle shops around the state.

Statewide, Pacific Beach is the leading hospitality zone, with over 21 popular restaurants and clubs already registered. Coming on strong in the north, RADD welcomes CAL-PAC members.

To claim RADD retail rewards, adults 21 and older present a RADD pledge card called a "RADD Designated Driver's License(TM)" when they make a purchase. Bars and restaurants give free soft drinks to acting designated drivers in a group of three or more. Convenience stores and other merchants help RADD carry the message to a wider audience by offering a discount with purchase to all adult RADD cardholders. The card which contains a sober-driving pledge may be picked up at participating locations throughout the State and also downloaded from the RADD website at www.radd.org.

The RADD California Coalition, which was founded with seed funding provided by a grant from the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency, produces the annual "What's The Plan? Figure It Out" campaign, an upbeat, celebrity-driven celebration that empowers adults to individually and collectively take responsibility for getting themselves and everyone else home safely. Designed to honor the intelligence of young legal drinkers ages 21-34 in California, it poses the question, "What's the Plan?" and then proposes a variety of solutions for consideration by singles, couples and groups prior to drinking.

"We're proud of the way California businesses like the Auto Clubs, MP3tunes and two of the largest brewers in America -- competitors Coors and Miller -- have stepped up to address road safety as a united coalition with RADD and the State of California this winter," said Erin Meluso, RADD President. "Working together, we've formed a powerful network to market the benefits and rewards of sober driving."

BACKGROUND:

The RADD California Coalition formed in 2005 to engage business, media, hospitality and state government leaders in a forum to utilize marketing techniques and lifestyle solutions to reduce deaths and injuries among ages 21-34 on California's roads.

RADD California Coalition members include AAA of Northern California, ABC Consulting, American Federation of Musicians, AOD Initiatives Research, Automobile Club of Southern California, the Bacchus Network, the California Association of Broadcasters, California Beer and Beverage Distributors, California Beverage Merchants, California Grocers Association, California Hotel & Lodging Association, California Restaurant Association, Circle K, Coors Brewing Company, Deluxe Media Management, ECN, Miller Brewing Company, the Motorcycle Safety Foundation, MP3tunes.com, Rob Ross Legislative and Governmental Relations, San Diego State University, Unique Screen Media, the U.S. Naval Safety Center and RADD celebrity supporters. All coalition efforts are in concert with the California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency and its departments including the California Highway Patrol, Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control, Office of Traffic Safety, Caltrans and Department of Motor Vehicles.

RADD: The Entertainment Industry's Voice For Road Safety is an internationally recognized non-profit organization that empowers celebrities and media partners to create positive attitudes about road safety. Founded in 1986, RADD advocates the use of designated drivers, seatbelts and safe driving through control behind the wheel, making responsible behavior the norm. RADD's messages are non-judgmental, hip and positive. www.radd.org

State Partner Agency Acronyms:
State of California Business, Transportation and Housing Agency (BTH)
Alcoholic Beverage Control (ABC)
California Highway Patrol (CHP)
California Department of Transportation (Caltrans)
Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV)
Office of Traffic Safety (OTS)

Title sponsors for the Coalition's 2006 Winter Campaign are AAA of Northern California, American Federation of Musicians, Automobile Club of Southern California, Coors Brewing Company, Miller Brewing Company, and MP3tunes.com.

American Federation of Musicians of the United States and Canada is the largest organization in the world dedicated to representing the interests of professional musicians. Whether it is negotiating fair agreements, protecting ownership of recorded music, securing benefits such as health care and pension, or lobbying our legislators, the AFM is committed to raising industry standards and placing the professional musician in the foreground of the cultural landscape. For more information, visit the web site at www.afm.org.

Automobile Club of Southern California, the largest member of the AAA federation of motor clubs, has been serving Southern California since 1900. Today, the Auto Club's members benefit by roadside assistance, insurance products and services, travel agency, financial products, automotive pricing and buying programs, automotive testing and analysis, trip planning services and highway and transportation safety programs. Information about these products and services is available on the Auto Club's Web site at www.AAA.com.

Coors Brewing Company is a subsidiary of Molson Coors Brewing Company. It is the third largest brewer in the U.S. Coors takes an active role in the fight against the irresponsible use of our products. In addition to our own efforts, we seek out prevention partners who are already getting results on the social issues linked to the misuse or abuse of our products. For more information about Coors, visit the company's Web site, www.coors.com

Miller Brewing, committed to creating strong communities across America, Milwaukee-based Miller Brewing Company invests millions of dollars each year through community initiatives, taxes paid and local goods and services purchased. The company's platform for corporate social investment and community partnership is Miller REACH(TM), which focuses on five primary causes: Responsibility, Employment, AIDS/HIV, Cultural Diversity and Heritage Initiatives. Miller is one of America's oldest brewers and is a wholly owned subsidiary of SABMiller plc, the world's second largest brewer. More information about Miller Brewing Company is available at the company's corporate web site, www.MillerBrewing.com.

MP3tunes is changing the face of music by allowing people to listen to their own music collection, everywhere. MP3tunes is a MSP (Music Service Provider) and home of the Oboe Music Locker. Oboe provides individuals a personal music locker with unlimited storage online, making it possible to access one's music collection from any computer or device, with no chords attached. Music is available for purchase at the site MP3tunes.com

PRESS CONTACT(s):
Jerry Digney, Jerry Brown, SOLTERS & DIGNEY, for RADD: 323 651 9300
John Carr/ABC, 916 826-8287

Source: RADD

CONTACT: Jerry Digney or Jerry Brown, both of SOLTERS & DIGNEY,
+1-323-651-9300, for RADD; or John Carr of ABC, +1-916-826-8287

Web site: http://www.radd.org/

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