Urinal Cakes to Spread Safety Message

The toilets in some Michigan bars may potentially freak out some patrons in the coming months. The state is distributing urinal cakes which play a recorded message to bar-goers, urging them to get a cab or a lift with someone sober rather than drive drunk. The message also ends on a hygeinic note: “Oh, and don’t forget, wash your hands.”

Some 200 bars and restaurants, all of whom are members of the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association, are taking part in the scheme.

“A lot of people are bombarded with posters and billboards, so this is a very different way to get that message out,” said David Puck, program director for the Michigan Licensed Beverage Association.

“We are always looking for different and unique ways to get our message to the people that we’re trying to reach, those people most likely to get behind the wheel drunk,” said Melody Kindraka, a spokesperson for the Michigan Office of Highway Safety Planning.

Men are arrested for drunk driving at a rate of nearly three to every one woman in Michigan, she added.