Should Metro Bars Stay Open Until 4 a.m.? (Minneapolis: fit in, how much)

[demtion35]

If the bars stayed open later there would automatically be more drunk drivers on the road

[uptown_urbanist]

Originally Posted by demtion35

If the bars stayed open later there would automatically be more drunk drivers on the road

Why is that? Longer hours doesn't automatically translate into more drunks, or more drunk drivers.

[Laggard]

Originally Posted by demtion35

If the bars stayed open later there would automatically be more drunk drivers on the road

That doesn't follow. It may give people more time to sober up before kicking them out the door and into their cars.

[rcsteiner]

Originally Posted by knke0204

Should Walgreens only stay open til 2 am? Same concept.

Some close earlier.

[knke0204]

Originally Posted by rcsteiner

Some close earlier.

By choice, not by some business-smothering government agency that says they cannot operate their business

[queenswake]

Isn't Minneapolis like in the top 5 states in the number of people who binge drink? One of the things I do not like about MN in general is the focus on drinking. It's one thing to have heavy drinkers in a place like NYC where few people drive, but it's really bad in a state where just about everyone drives everywhere.

For the argument that it would give people time to sober up, that really only works if people are able to eat for the last couple of hours. But most of these places are not going to keep their kitchen staff there until 4 AM. People aren't going to sit there drinking water with no food for two hours to sober up. They're going to get tired and drive home.

[demtion35]

Originally Posted by Laggard

That doesn't follow. It may give people more time to sober up before kicking them out the door and into their cars.

I think...
Only time will sober someone up and that means many many hours so if they are allready drunk legally staying a few more hours in the bar is not going to sober them up enough to legally drive. IMO

[demtion35]

Originally Posted by uptown_urbanist

Why is that? Longer hours doesn't automatically translate into more drunks, or more drunk drivers.

Bar Patrons who are drinkers many (not all of cours) are allready drunk at the normal closing time and they would just keep on drinking if able as the bar would not close until 4 am.

Im not talking about the ones who sit at some fancy bar and listen to someone play the piano all night, and sip the same fancy drink with a olive and salt around the rim.

Im talking about bars you know the ones where most go to drink where drinking is known and drinking is what they show up to do.

Big difference, patrons get drunk in these bars, stagger a bit as they walk out the door, and go climb in their car, and drive home. I dont know if you are familiar with this stuff that much or not Im not judging but (not all of course) but an awfull lot will stay if the bar is open until 4am and continue to drink until they are told to leave or they leave on their own, which in many cases they will then attempt to go and gain entrance to another establishment.

[xandrex]

Originally Posted by Slig

That is another thing that would be far less of an issue if public transportation was improved and people continued to move away from a car-dependant culture.

This.

I'm visiting my family in Duluth and the topic came to public transportation. The rest of my family wouldn't dream of taking the bus if they lived in Minneapolis. My dad thought that was the craziest idea in the world. To him, buses are dirty, smelly places that weird, poor people use. Of course, if he lived in the cities, he would be in the 'burbs, so he'd be using the fancy buses that are beautiful, but of course, he'd rather sit in rush-hour traffic, burn gas, and pay for parking. My dad and siblings were aghast when I suggested that after college I was likely to get a monthly bus pass, even if I have a car - they thought it was environmental elitism or something!


Anyways, back to the topic...

Originally Posted by demtion35

If the bars stayed open later there would automatically be more drunk drivers on the road

This doesn't make sense. At worst, it would mean the same amount of drunks out on the road.

Really it would come to one of these scenarios:
1. All the drunks stay until 4 a.m. and then all leave at once, creating the same closing-time rush, except at a later hour. This might actually be a positive as there are fewer sober people awake and driving at 4 a.m. than there are at 2 a.m. (I know I've been on the roads around 2 a.m. many times).
2. The drunks will trickle out throughout the night, with a few staying until closing time. This disperses the drunks out onto the road in less volume. Not sure if this is positive or negative - probably a neutral thing.
3. Those who are drinking can continue to have drinks until they feel like it, but aren't kicked out onto the streets at 2 a.m. and can sit and socialize until they are sober enough to drive home.


I really think, as I said previously, that this should be tied to an ordinance that would allow restaurants to stay open late (or even all night). This would absolutely help if a restaurant near a bar could be open. After you get kicked out (whether 2 a.m. or 4 a.m.), heading over and sitting and eating food for a while and staying OFF the roads would be a serious improvement.

On another note (and tying back to my rant on public transportation), why isn't there better bus service on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday nights? I've gone out to clubs and such downtown before and if you want to get back (to the U, for instance), you have to make sure you're out at the ONE TIME the bus comes during the hour. The bus is always packed during those hours, so it's not like they couldn't run more of them. Cabs are an absolute mess, so they're out of the picture - we tried one night and after getting one reserved and waiting an hour, we were told to just take a bus home, despite the fact that the 3 had stopped running. We had to take a 16 and walk from Washington Avenue all the way to Como. Ridiculous. Providing safe transportation home is an absolute MUST to keep drunks off the roads!

[Drover]

Originally Posted by Cleaver

I just got back from a visit to Chicago, and I love how late the bars stay open there. Many probably think that adopting the same hours would cause more behavorial problems. However, the younger crowd, such as myself, would love it.

What say you?

It should be noted that a very small percentage of Chicago bars have 4am licenses, and they are a lot more expensive than the standard 2am license. Roughly 95% of bars here close at 2am 6 nights a week and 3am on Saturday nights. (The 4am-license bars can stay open until 5am on Saturdays.) I was actually more annoyed that I couldn't get a growler from MTHB on a Sunday afternoon than I am at getting shoved out the door of most Chicago bars at 2am.

Another thing is Chicago keeps at least part of its mass transit system operating 24/7 and it's not difficult to get a cab at any hour of the night in the major nightlife districts. That makes 4am bars a bit more defensible. And I'll say candidly that my odd work hours and resultant odd sleeping schedule make me grateful that I do have a handful of 4am bars to choose from. Finding one where the clientele isn't sloshed by 3am is a little trickier though. I wish my local 4am watering hole wasn't a Mos Eisley barf-fest near its closing time.