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Hearing voices? They're just in the head

A state hopes to gain ground in the war on drunken driving by using a potent new weapon.

By ASSOCIATED PRESS
Published February 16, 2007

RIO RANCHO, N.M. - New Mexico is hoping to keep drunks off the road by lecturing them at the last place they usually stop before getting behind the wheel: the urinal.

The state recently paid $21 each for about 500 talking urinal deodorizer cakes and has put them in men's rooms in bars and restaurants across the state.

When a man steps up, the motion-sensitive plastic device says, in a woman's voice that is flirty, then stern, "Hey, big guy. Having a few drinks? Think you had one too many? Then it's time to call a cab or call a sober friend for a ride home."

The recorded message ends: "Remember, your future is in your hand."

The talking urinal represents the latest effort to fight drunken driving in New Mexico, which has long had one of the highest rates of alcohol-related traffic deaths in the nation. The new tactic is aimed only at men, since they account for 78 percent of all driving-under-the-influence-related convictions in the state.

"It startled me the first time I heard it, but it sure got my attention," said Ben Miller, a patron at the Turtle Mountain Brewing Co. bar and restaurant. "It's a fantastic idea."

Turtle Mountain Brewing owner Niko Ortiz commended the New Mexico Transportation Department for "thinking way outside the box."

Department spokesman S.U. Mahesh said the bathroom is a perfect place to get the message across. In the restroom, guys don't chitchat, he said. "It's all business. We've got their total attention for 10 to 15 seconds"

Similar urinal cakes have been used for antidrug campaigns in Colorado, Pennsylvania and Australia, and for anti-DWI efforts on New York's Long Island, said Richard Deutsch of Healthquest Technologies Inc., which manufactures them. But Deutsch said he believes New Mexico is the only state to buy the devices.

New Mexico had 143 alcohol-related deaths in 2005, for the nation's eighth-highest rate per miles driven.

At Turtle Mountain, the urinal cakes have proved so intriguing that three have been swiped already.

"I'm mystified why someone would stick their hand into one of our urinals," Ortiz said. "But I'm sure we'll see them on eBay. Hopefully, the seller will advertise it as, 'Stolen from Turtle Mountain.' "

[Last modified February 16, 2007, 00:44:07]