An inside look at Safe Rides

Miguel Lopez and William Miles

With the phones turning on at 10 p.m. and remaining on till 2 a.m., Safe Rides is in the business of providing free, safe and confidential rides home.

It may seem simple, but there are many cogs that make this machine run.

On Saturday, the State Hornet sent Miguel and I to Safe Rides to see what it was all about.

The program is run by volunteers that are usually part of a student organization. The two organizations that volunteered Saturday were Environmental Students Organization and Peer Mentors.

“This is my third year doing this,” said Jeryl Concepcion, a business marketing major. “I’ve been doing this since I was a freshman.” 

On the other hand, others were doing it for the first time.

“I’ve never done it before-I was free tonight so why not,” said Mary Ratuita, a senior and family consumer sciences major.

Concepcion said volunteering for Safe Rides was her way of showing she cared about Sacramento State.

“It’s a good way to give back to the campus. Since I have been given so much its nice to give back as well,” said Concepcion.

Volunteer groups earn $500 for participating five straight days.

Genobeva Snowden, assistant coordinator as well a senior sociology major, was in charge that night.

The bare minimum amount of people needed to run a night is eight, with a total of four cars. Each vehicle consists of one driver and one navigator, said Snowden.

Drivers are compensated 50 cents per mile driven and are even provided vouchers for a detailing if someone happens to throw up in the car.

The process of getting a ride is a simple one. The student calls the Safe Rides number Wednesday through Saturday between the hours of 10 p.m and 2 a.m. The student must be within a 10-mile radius of Sac State, have his or her One Card available to show the driver and have an actual address for the drop off.

Having watched this go on for a couple of hours, we decided that we wanted to volunteer to experience the entire process ourselves. Miguel was going to be the driver and I was going to be the navigator. To be a driver, Lopez had to provide proof of insurance.

At this point we weren’t sure what to expect, but we were excited.

We were going to be part of an eight-student pick up. Three cars were going to go, and Miguel and I were responsible for two students.

As we walked to our cars, we decided as a group who the lead vehicle was going to be. Miguel and I took the lead since he knew our destination.

When we arrived at La Tropicana night club, I called the students to tell them we had arrived. We checked their One Card to verify they were Sac State students. Once everyone was safe in the vehicle, we headed off to their destination.

During the drive, we found out that one of the students heard about Safe Rides during orientation this past summer. Her sorority made sure the Safe Ride number was on her phone for times like this.

When we arrived at the student’s destination, we had to make sure it was an actual address and not just a random location.

During the drive back to Sac State, we could appreciate that these students took the time and called Safe Rides instead of driving home after drinking.

Safe Rides was created to prevent students from driving under the influence, but it’s not a taxi service to be taken advantage of.

Miguel Lopez can be reached at [email protected]

William Miles can be reached at [email protected]