New business drives you, and your car, home from bar

A few weekends ago, Catherine Niehaus was out for drinks with a friend in South Barrington.The 42-year-old mom was having a good time -- so good she started feeling guilty. She was supposed to be the designated driver that night."I stayed longer than I thought. The beer was a little better than I thought," says Niehaus, of South Elgin. "We were getting a little silly, and I felt bad since I was supposed to be the responsible one."Since Niehaus preaches against drinking and driving to her teenage kids, she decided to put her money where her mouth is.That's where Chris May and Chuck Grote came in with their new business, KeeZ PleeZ.Think of it as a step up from a taxi. Not only will they pick you up at the bar and get you home safely, they'll also drive you and your car home for a fee starting at $35."It's a lot cheaper than getting a DUI," says Grote -- not to mention the intended benefit of making the roads safer.A bartender at Brass Restaurant Brewery called the service for her, and the duo picked up Niehaus and her friend at the bar and brought them home safely."I didn't have to worry about getting into trouble," she says. "It made it more of a fun night."Even for the most safety-conscious and well-intentioned, going out for drinks in the suburbs can be a little tricky.There are plenty of bars, happy hours and parties out here, but you have to drive to get there, which means getting home can be a dilemma.This isn't the city. Cabs and public transportation aren't around every corner to pick up you and your friends if you've had too much to drink.And sometimes, finding a designated driver isn't as easy as it sounds.So, modeling their fledgling business after similar ones in Las Vegas and New Jersey, Grote and May have established what is essentially a professional designated driver service.They've been driving those who've overindulged -- and their cars -- home from establishments in the Schaumburg area for about a month now. They say bartenders, bar managers and others cite a need for it.Owner had 2 DUIsIn Illinois, 47 percent of the 1,254 traffic deaths in 2006 were alcohol related, say statistics from Mothers Against Drunk Driving.The average cost of a DUI is about $15,000, which takes into account attorney fees, court costs and property damage, according to the Illinois secretary of state.Groups that work to eliminate drunken driving say a business like KeeZ PleeZ is, without question, a great idea."If companies are willing to help people get home safely without drinking and driving, that is great," says Stephen Carr, executive director of Illinois MADD.The only drawback is that it could encourage high-risk or binge drinking, Carr says.You might think calling a service like this is a great idea when you're sober, Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists Executive Director Charlene Chapman says.But when people drink, their judgment is impaired, and they don't always make rational decisions, she says.Grote and May of KeeZ PleeZ met playing golf several years ago. Starting up the company was an idea they kicked around on the course. Right now, there's just the two of them running the business.May, of Elk Grove Village, is 51 and spent more than 30 years in the funeral business. For the past year, he drove a limousine but wanted to try something new.Grote, of South Elgin, is 47. During the day he is a business loan broker and before that spent years in the bakery business. As a young adult, Grote had two DUIs and says if a service like this were available back then, things might have been a little different."A lot of people avoid taking a taxi because they don't want to leave their cars behind," Grote says.How it worksOnce you make the call to dispatch the KeeZ PleeZ team, they'll send two people to get you.One of them drives you and anyone else in the party home in your own car, and the other follows in the company van. They have liability insurance to cover their use of the customer's car.Grote and May are targeting about 18 bars and restaurants in the Schaumburg area. As of now, they're offering the services Thursday through Monday nights, with pickups until 1 a.m. on Sunday, Monday and Thursday and until 3 a.m. Friday and Saturday.Pickups are being made within a 5-mile radius of Woodfield Shopping Center, and they'll drive you home up to 20 miles. There's a $35 fee for the first five miles, and it's $4 a mile after that.On slow nights, the business owners have been talking with managers and bartenders at the local businesses, encouraging them to offer KeeZ PleeZ as another option to taxis.Some bars bristleSome have taken a little umbrage to Grote and May's visits, they say, insisting their establishments don't over-serve customers.But for the most part, people say the additional services will be beneficial to suburban bargoers."I think it's awesome," says Mark Plough, a bar manager at Schaumburg's Fox Hound. "If you're loaded and you take a cab home, you don't want to come get your car in the morning."At that bar, they won't tow cars left overnight. But some places do, he says."It's a running joke when we close at 5 a.m. to count the cars still in the parking lot," he says. "If you have 12 to 15 cars, you know you had a good night."On a recent Saturday night, May and Grote drove around to local bars, putting yellow fliers on cars of bar patrons."Need a designated driver? Call KeeZ PleeZ," it says.Later on, the two continued to stop in the parking lots of crowded bars, taking note of which ones were busiest.As they drove down Higgins Road about midnight and saw a swerving car, Grote proclaims, "Now there's someone who should be calling us." The idea may be a first for this area, but others have recognized the need.In Naperville, NDUIT, or No DUI Tonight, was launched this year. That business allows bar patrons who can't drive home to call a tow truck and take them home. It costs $85 for an unscheduled pickup and an additional $2 a mile.As part of an annual New Year's Eve tradition in Island Lake, Sharp Auto Truck Repair offers free tows home to anyone in the area. Police in Fox Lake also started this up two years ago.Grote and May hope to grow this business in the future, hiring more drivers than just themselves to target different suburban areas and possibly work private parties."We're kind of getting paid to be good Samaritans," Grote says.What are people saying about Keez Pleez?"There definitely is a need for something like that. I don't know how many people would take advantage of it. If you're sober and rational, it's a great idea. But when you start drinking, you stop thinking."-- Charlene Chapman, executive director, Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists"The only drawback is that it encourages high-risk drinking, perhaps binge drinking, but as long as people are not drinking and driving, we are excited about that."-- Stephen Carr, executive director, MADD Illinois"You can hardly find a taxi around here. I would hope I would have made a good decision that night about driving."--Catherine Niehaus, KeeZ PleeZ customer"I think it's awesome. If you're loaded and you take a cab home, you don't want to come get your car in the morning."-- Mark Plough, bar manager, Fox Hound in Schaumburgbull; To contact KeeZ PleeZ, call (224) 653-9065 or visit www.KeeZPleeZ.com