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Scoot over, and they'll drive

Had a few and don't want to drive? A service called Zingo can get you and your car home - or wherever.

By ALAN SNEL, Special to the Times
Published December 4, 2007

Zingo Tampa co-owner Margeaux McCorvey folds up the scooter recently while promoting her business at MacDinton's bar on South Howard Avenue. If you don't want to risk driving after drinking, you can hire Zingo to drive you and your car.
	[KATHLEEN FLYNN | Times]

When Leslie Gass lived in New York City, it was no big deal to have a few glasses of wine in a bar and then get home incident-free. It was New York, after all, so Gass would hop on the subway. Drive a car after drinking? Not even an option.

But in April, the 29-year-old moved to Tampa, where the car is king. And now those innocent glasses of wine in New York became potential driving under the influence material in Florida, where there is scant public transportation for late-night imbibers and merrymakers.

What to do? Take a cab? Gass disliked leaving her car behind overnight outside the bar. But then a new business debuted in Tampa in mid-October that catered to Gass and that big demographic in Tampa Bay - the drinking crowd.

Zingo, the brainchild of Atlanta entrepreneurs Jim Valentine and Charles Barfield, uses designated drivers who show up on a foldable scooter, stow the scooter in the car trunk of a drinking patron, and then drive the person's car to the next stop - whether it's home or the next bar.

The owners of the new Zingo franchise in Tampa, Jessica Carlson and Margeaux McCorvey, are friends who worked together at Mangroves Seafood Grille & Bar in Tampa and at Clear Channel on Gandy Avenue, cited Hillsborough County's state-leading 7,054 DUI arrests in 2006 to explain why the Zingo franchise can eventually be profitable. One in 67 people between the ages of 21 and 44 have been charged with DUI in Hillsborough County.

Ellen Snelling, chairwoman of the Tampa Alcohol Coalition, a panel of law enforcement officers and agency leaders, said the high number of DUIs shows there's a business niche for Zingo Tampa.

"There's plenty of people apparently drinking and driving," Snelling said.

Carlson said startup costs were $160,000 to pay for items such as insurance, a fleet of Italian-made Di Blasi scooters, and a franchise fee.Zingo Tampa has four scooters and another 14 have been ordered. The most expensive startup cost is insurance, while the scooters sell wholesale for about $2,000 each, Carlson said.

Carlson said she is getting a $500,000 Small Business Administration government loan to help underwrite her new enterprise.

Zingo of Port Richey opened earlier this year, joining other franchises in Atlanta, Baton Rouge, La., Charlotte, N.C., metro Phoenix and Santa Barbara, Calif. Carlson and McCorvey are also looking into opening a Zingo franchise in Pinellas County in 2008. Zingo Tampa's soft opening was Oct. 19.

Carlson and McCorvey spend their time marketing the service, such as placing posters and informing customers at bars such as MacDinton's in south Tampa.

Zingo Tampa costs $15 for a pickup and $3 per mile for non-members and $10 for pickup and $3 per mile for members. Membership is free. The Tampa franchise is serving south Tampa, Ybor City and downtown Tampa, but plans to branch out to the University of South Florida and Brandon areas.

Besides driving the cars of customers who have consumed too much alcohol late at night, Tampa Zingo will also drive you and your car home after doctor and dental appointments during the day.

Zingo Tampa has generated a customer base of 60 patrons, including Tim Doell, 29, of Tampa. Doell said he was wary of allowing a stranger to drive his new Hyundai Elantra the first time he called Zingo Tampa at the Guavaween event in Ybor City. But he didn't want to risk a DUI charge.

"I know so many people who have DUIs or had situations where they shouldn't be driving. This is a viable option. It's a lot cheaper than getting a DUI. If there's a county where Zingo can make big bucks, it's this one," Doell said. "With my luck, I'd be pulled over at a checkpoint."

Indeed, no other county in Florida has more DUI cases than Hillsborough. Well-known people such as just-retired WFLA-TV news anchor Bob Hite, Tampa Bay Buccaneers player Cato June and Tampa Bay Lightning president Ron Campbell have been cited for DUI in the past two years.

"If you drink two glasses of wine, things can happen," Gass said. She also noted that a friend died in a DUI car accident 18 months ago, which also prompted her to pay for the Zingo Tampa service.

"The only thing I get from customers is that they're thankful for the ride and that they can get home with their car," said Zingo scooter operator Damian Escobar, 33. "They're very friendly, and sometimes they'll offer you to come in and have a drink, but obviously we can't."

On Friday nights, Carlson and McCorvey market their franchise at MacDinton's, a popular Irish bar on S Howard Avenue. Some bars have not been receptive to Zingo, but MacDinton's welcomes the service. The women recently posted Zingo posters in every bathroom stall at MacDinton's.

"Our marketing is for drunk people and drunk people have to use the bathroom," Carlson said.

"We want to get the message out that if you can't get a cab, don't get in your car and drive," noted Barry O'Connor, MacDinton's general manager.

What is Zingo?

A service to drive people home from a bar, doctor's office or other locale when they are unable to drive safely. The company was founded in 2005 by two Atlanta entrepreneurs.

Cost and Tampa coverage area

$15 for a pickup and $3 per mile for nonmembers and $10 for pickup and $3 per mile for members. Membership is free. The Tampa franchise serves south Tampa, Ybor City and downtown Tampa and is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

How to reach Zingo Tampa

- By phone: 1-888-946-4611

- By e-mail: zingo_tampa@yahoo.com">href="mailto:zingo_tampa@yahoo.com" mce_href="mailto:zingo_tampa@yahoo.com">zingo_tampa@yahoo.com

On the Web

- www.ZingoTampa.com

- www.myspace.com/Zingo Tampa

Did you know?

There is also a Zingo franchise in Port Richey. Contact it at (727) 534-4803 or www. zingoportrichey.com. The service is available Sunday thourgh Thursday from 6 p.m. to 3 a.m., and Friday and Saturday from 5 p.m. to 4 a.m. The pricing is the same as the Tampa franchise.

[Last modified December 3, 2007, 23:48:32]