|
At least ten people will die and up to 400 will be injured in drink drive crashes during Christmas week if current trends continue, according to the RAC Foundation for Motoring.
Despite 40 years of anti-drink drive campaigns, the introduction of a rigid drink drive limit and the breathalyser, last year 560 road users died in drink drive collisions and 18500 were injured, 2500 of them seriously.
Shocking though these figures are, however, drivers seem increasingly willing to risk injury and prosecution by drinking and driving.
Almost twenty years of steady and significant casualty reductions, beginning in the mid 1970s, ground to a halt in the mid 1990s and numbers began to increase. The 2003 casualty toll was almost a third higher than in 1993/4.
Now the RAC Foundation for Motoring is urging motorists to think of the consequences that drinking and driving can have on them and their families - as well as their social responsibility to others.
The first and most obvious consequence is the danger that drinking and driving presents to drivers themselves and to their passengers. The majority of drink drive casualties are in fact drivers and passengers. In 2002, 70 per cent of the 3320 fatal and serious injuries were to this group.
Each year between 750,000 and one million drivers are breath tested following collisions or in roadside screening tests. In 2002, 112,000 drivers were arrested and 86,000 were convicted, disqualified for a minimum of 12 months, received up to 11 points on their licences and a fine of up to £5000. In 2000, 6500 drink drive offenders received prison sentences.
Convicted drink drivers may lose their jobs and face social stigma. Even once the licence is returned they may face difficulty in getting motor insurance or, at best, many years of inflated insurance premiums.
Kevin Delaney, RAC Foundation's Head of Traffic and Road Safety said:
"Despite confident statements from politicians and police officers that drinking and driving is socially unacceptable, the chilling statistics clearly suggest it is still a serious problem.
"If we knew that ten people would die and 400 would be injured in avoidable rail or air crashes during Christmas week there would be a public outcry and action would be taken to avoid the carnage.
"We must all take responsibility for tackling this menace. Drivers must finally recognise that safe driving needs levels of concentration, awareness and co-ordination that are not compatible with any alcohol consumption.
"We must decide whether we are going to drink or drive and plan accordingly. The Government clearly needs to do more in terms of driver education and to encourage police to give a higher priority to traffic patrolling to deter bad driving, rather than just dealing with the consequences.
"If every driver were to adopt a more responsible attitude to drinking and driving the annual Christmas road carnage could be significantly reduced and we could all enjoy a happy, peaceful and safe Christmas.
RAC Foundation advice to drivers this Christmas is simple and uncompromising. If you are going to drive don't
drink. Although a single drink may seem harmless, the potential consequences both to other road users and to yourself may be
disastrous.
Drink Drive Fact File:
-
Drink drive crashes account for one in six road
deaths;
-
Nearly a quarter of drivers killed on our roads are above the drink drive
limit;
-
Drivers under the age of 25 are much more likely to be involved in drink drive
crashes;
-
Men are three times more likely to fail a breath test than women.
RAC Foundation
supports:
-
Proactive schemes, such as 'designated driver', to encourage drivers not to drink and drinkers not to
drive;
-
The use of technology, such as alcohol ignition interlock devices, to prevent drinkers from
driving;
-
More police traffic officers and better use of intelligence to target their efforts to provide both a visible deterrent and a rapid response to the most dangerous motoring
offenders;
-
More police traffic officers and better use of intelligence to target their efforts to provide both a visible deterrent and a rapid response to the most dangerous motoring
offenders;
-
Roadside evidential breath
tests;
-
An extension of penal sanctions available to the courts to ensure that drink/drive offenders are able to receive a combination of punishment, education and advice to reduce the likelihood of repeat offending once they are allowed back on the road.
Source: RAC
Foundation
|
