MARINE CORPS BASE CAMP PENDLETON, Calif. -- Marines and Sailors are not taking full advantage of base-wide programs designated to help save lives, according to base officials and local cab drivers.
Two Marine Corps Community Services-sponsored programs, Unit Arrive Alive and Arrive Alive, help Marines and Sailors avoid alcohol-related incidents through travel vouchers.
The programs are put in place to provide Marines and Sailors a safe way home.
“We hope to decrease the on-and off-base driving-under-the-influence incidents and get the message out (to) not drink and drive,” Amanda L. Moore, a contract specialist with Marine Corps Community Services Camp Pendleton said. “We want our Marines and Sailors, as well as others, to be safe on the road.”
The Unit Arrive Alive provides units and its Marines and Sailors vouchers to help pay transportation costs from off-base establishments to their residence. The Arrive Alive program allows servicemembers to travel from any establishment on base to their residence for free.
However, not enough Marines and Sailors are cashing in on the vouchers available through their unit representatives.
¬¬“I thought the program was phasing out because of the lack of vouchers currently received,” said Bill Thorstad, a driver for Yellow Cab Company.
Thorstad only received four vouchers since the program began.
“Unfortunately, the vouchers aren’t used as much as we’d like to see them used. It’s a wonderful program we hope to see more Marines and Sailors utilize in the future,” said Moore.
The programs were established by MCCS to provide Marines and Sailors a way to get home when they find themselves in a situation where safety is a concern due to alcohol consumption, Moore said.
For a unit to be eligible to participate in the program, the unit must have a commander’s recreation fund.
There are 55 units on base that have commander’s recreation fund, and 42 of these units participate in the program.
“MCCS pays 100 percent of the cab fare initially, and then the servicemembers reimburses MCCS 50 percent of the fare,” explained Moore.
“The recreation fund will be used to pay the 50 percent if the Marine or Sailor does not personally reimburse MCCS,” said Moore.
Currently, there are no reported incidents of non-reimbursement.
For a servicemember to redeem the voucher, “they simply call a cab and (provide) the voucher containing the servicemember’s battalion number and commander’s name and number. The voucher is presented to the driver, and the Marine or Sailor is then safely taken home,” said Moore.
As the distance between home and the Marine can sometimes be far, the voucher is able to cover a large radius.
“The voucher can be used to pick up servicemembers anywhere from Camp Pendleton to San Diego,” stated Moore.
Two cab companies, Red Cab Company for Riverside County and Yellow Cab Company for San Diego and Orange County, also honor the UAA vouchers.
“It’s a great program. We get a call, make sure the voucher has all the information we need to bill MCCS, and away we go,” said Thorstad. “It’s really that simple, but we don’t get many calls for the UAA pick-ups.”
If abuse occurs, the servicemember will be held 100-percent responsible for the cab fare.
“We would like to see more servicemembers take advantage of this program, but at the same time we will not tolerate abuse of this program either,” Moore explained.
For more information on the Unit Arrive Alive program and Arrive Alive program, contact Amanda Moore at (760)725-1174.