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Motorists arrested for drunken driving after Labor Day festivities in Baltimore saloons won't have the excuse that they didn't have another way home. AAA Mid-Atlantic is teaming up with Yellow Cab and the State Highway Administration to offer free cab rides for alcohol-indulging drivers as part of its Tipsy? Taxi! program. Free rides will be available by calling 877-963-TAXI between 4 p.m. tomorrow and 4 a.m. Tuesday. Riders must be age 21 or older and have been drinking at a bar or restaurant in Baltimore.

Howard County expects to save $6.3 million in interest payments during the next dozen years by refinancing $104 million in nine-year-old bonds. The sale Wednesday refinanced $92 million in general county bonds and $12 million in water and sewer bonds, said Sharon Greisz, county finance director. By getting a 3.57 percent interest rate - a full one percentage point lower than the average interest on the old bonds - Greisz said the county would save $520,000 a year in interest, totaling $5.3 million in savings over the life of the general bonds, and $48,000 a year totaling $1 million in savings for the water and sewer bonds.

Howard County's budget surplus is down 40 percent from the previous year's record high because of the slowing real estate market and slightly lower-than-expected income tax revenue. But despite the decline from $38 million in fiscal 2006 to $22.7 million in fiscal 2007, which ended June 30, the surplus is sizable, and it helped Howard maintain its AAA bond rating as the county prepares to refinance $103.1 million in bond debt next week. The county's Office of Finance released the data Wednesday.

Nobody except the driver of a green pickup truck knows who made the first obscene gesture on Interstate 270 yesterday morning. But after an exchange of angry gestures with the truck's driver on the busy commuter route in Frederick County, a Pennsylvania man and woman in a Chrysler Sebring were killed in the crash that followed the apparent road rage incident. The pickup's driver has not been found. The accident near Frederick occurred the same day AAA Mid-Atlantic released a survey showing that by a wide margin Maryland drivers consider aggressive drivers the biggest danger on the state's roads.

Ron D. George Membership specialist AAA Mid-Atlantic, Arnold Salary --$35,000 Age --30 Years on the job --One How he got started --George lived in Williamsburg, Va., working at a small airport and helping his mother open a bed and breakfast inn. He then moved to the Annapolis area and began looking for a job. On a whim, he walked into the Arnold office of AAA to ask if they were hiring. Typical day --As a membership specialist, George concentrates on selling and explaining the various benefits associated with the auto club.

While Maryland was basking in sunny spring weather last week, a blizzard hit the northern Plains and left drifts of up to 5 feet of snow in North Dakota. That came just as AAA announced that North Dakota is one of the two cheapest places in the country to take a vacation. There's something about this that just fires the imagination. There are fewer people in North Dakota than there are in Baltimore County, even though North Dakota is more than 100 times larger. Wow, if you think about it. The sad truth is that a lot of us have never been to North Dakota, which is too bad because some of the most striking impressions are made by some of the most unlikely places.

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. -- Here's an item you may have left out of your personal budget: The average cost of driving a car is now $7,834 a year. AAA released its annual survey yesterday about the average costs of owning passenger cars that are driven 15,000 miles a year. The average driving cost - a mix of expenses for small, medium and large passenger cars - works out to $150 a week. And that's not just because the price of gasoline is hovering around $2.50 in the nation. The AAA survey factors in gasoline at 9.5 cents a mile based on a $2.40 a gallon average price nationwide at the end of 2005.

Agencies give state AAA bond rating Maryland has once again been awarded the best possible rating for $300 million in debt it plans to issue next week, state Treasurer Nancy K. Kopp and Gov. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr. announced yesterday. The three major bond-rating agencies - Fitch Ratings, Moody's Investors Service and Standard & Poor's - have graded Maryland's bonds at AAA, the highest ranking, Kopp said. The rating means that Maryland can borrow money at the lowest possible interest rate for a state government.

Despite a rise in gas and hotel prices, more people are expected to travel by car or plane during the July Fourth holiday weekend than last year. About 678,900 of the more than 5 million Maryland residents plan to travel 50 miles or more during the three-day weekend, according to a survey by AAA Mid-Atlantic. Nationally, AAA estimates that 40.3 million people plan to travel 50 miles or more - a 2.8 percent increase from the Fourth of July last year. Of those traveling, 84 percent will drive, 11 percent will fly and 5 percent will use other modes of transportation, including train or bus. The top driving destinations for Marylanders this year include Ocean City; Williamsburg, Va.; Walt Disney World and Orlando, Fla.; Myrtle Beach, S.C.; and Maine.

Moves Baseball MLB: Suspended following minor league players who have violated "Major League Baseball's Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program" (x-released): Cubs: David Cash, Iowa (AAA), x-Jesus Medrano, Iowa (AAA), Carlos Vasquez, West Tennessee (AA), Robinson Chirinos, West Tennessee (AA), Matthew Craig, West Tennessee (AA), x-Kevin Reinking, Daytona (A), Oscar Bernard, Daytona (A). White Sox: Jose Espinal, Birmingham (AA). Rockies: Jason Diangelo, Asheville (A), Neil Wilson, Asheville (A)