Need a lift? Call Fox Lake P.D.

Fox Lake Police are again offering to give New Year's Eve partyers a ride home.

Police Chief Mike Behan said people will be picked up at any Fox Lake bar and taken to any Fox Lake home for free late on Dec. 31 and into the morning of Jan. 1.

People will be able to either have their cars towed, or leave them to be picked up in the morning.

"We are working with local towing companies to pick up the cars at no expense to the car owner," he said. "So, the driver will have a choice: either have the car towed home, or leave it there and pick it up in the morning."

Officers will not drive people outside of the village of Fox Lake, Behan said.

He said the idea for the program started after he had to tell a family their son was dead on New Year's Eve.

"I don't ever want to do that again," he said. "And, this really is one of the best ways to avoid having to do that because we are giving people an alternative to driving. "

He said before the program started, the village would average about three accidents on New Year's Eve. Since the program started three years ago, there hasn't been a single one.

"Truthfully, driving people home is better than allowing people to get behind the wheel to drive themselves home," he said.

He estimated about 150 people have been driven home by police in the past three years, adding that the number of people who use the program each year has grown annually.

"To me, it's a success," he said. "Some people say we need to enforce DUIs more on New Years Eve, but I say it is important to stop them from driving in the first place."

People wishing to take advantage of the program late Wednesday or early Thursday morning should call the Fox Lake police at (847) 587-3100.