Nick drives home the message... drink driving is social taboo ...
Action on Drinking and Driving
The success of "A Quiet Massacre" led to a coalition of organisations to strengthen counter-measures against drinking and driving. Action on Drinking and Driving was a coalition of the Parliamentary Council on Transport Safety, Friends of the Earth, representatives of the Police, the Association of Road Safety Officers, the Probation Service and the Campaign Against Drinking and Driving. Its scientific advisor was Dr James Dunbar, the author of "A Quiet Massacre", and it was chaired by Professor Brian Prichard, Chairman of the Institute of Alcohol Studies.
ADD's manifesto was launched at a major conference in 1987 by Nick Ross.
ADD's manifesto was:
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the introduction of random breath testing;
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the lowering of the legal limit to 50mg/100ml with a differential lower limit for novice drivers;
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more appropriate charges and penalties for drinking and driving, particularly where drivers have caused death or injury;
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the extension and improvement of the "High Risk Offender Scheme" - a scheme devised to manage drivers assessed as having drinking problems;
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first time offenders to undertake an alcohol education course before their driving licences are returned;
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the immediate suspension of the driving licence after a positive evidential breath test;
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publicity and education campaigns to focus on the potential consequences for others of drinking and driving;
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further research to ascertain the prevalence of drinking and driving.
With the exception of the first two and the immediate suspension of the driving licence, most of these aims have now been achieved.
Thirty years of breath testing have achieved a 'social revolution' in behaviour and attitudes towards drinking and driving.
The number of people agreeing with the statement that they would never drink and drive has risen from 59% in 1986 to 80% in 1997.
Surveys tracking the effect of the Government anti-drink drive campaign have found:
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In 1979, 51 per cent admitted to drinking and driving on at least one occasion during the previous week. The figure for 1995 was 25 per cent.
Over the same period, among those who reported six or more drinks on at least one occasion in the previous week, the proportion who admitted to driving afterwards fell from 15 per cent to 4 per cent.
Roadside surveys conducted in two areas of England in 1988 during the traditional drinking hours of 10pm to 3am found alcohol present in 17.3 per cent of drivers, around 5 per cent of them being above 50 mg., 1.7 per cent being over 80 mg. and 0.2 per cent being more than 160 mg.
Subsequently in 1990, further roadside surveys were carried out between 7pm and 2am at weekends in 10 areas of England and Wales. In total, around 13,500 drivers were breath tested, 3.2 per cent were found to be over half the legal limit and 1 per cent were over the legal limit.
The majority of the public have taken to heart the message 'Don't Drink and Drive' lending support to a zero limit and Random Breath Testing.
European Union
Neil Kinnock European Commissioner for Transport calls for 50mg./100ml. limit and common penalties throughout the EU.
Alcohol Limits
| Austria | 0.8 |
| Belgium | 0.5 |
| Denmark | 0.8 |
| Germany | 0.8 |
| Ireland | 0.8 |
| Greece | 0.5 |
| Spain | 0.8 |
| Finland | 0.5 |
| France | 0.5 |
| Italy | 0.8 |
| Luxembourg | 0.8 |
| Netherlands | 0.5 |
| Portugal | 0.5 |
| Sweden | 0.2 |
| UK | 0.8 |
... but still wrecks lives ...
The present limit is too high and cannot be supported on scientific grounds. The risk of having an accident doubles at 50mg. and increases ninefold at 80mg.
Beneficial effects of reducing the limit have been reported for various states in Australia and USA.
Australia
Lowering the legal limit, combined with random breath testing, cut by 90% the number of drivers between 50mg. and 80mg. and by 41% the number of drivers caught driving over 150mg.
USA
States which reduced the legal limit to 80mg. compared with neighbouring states which retained 100mg. limit, experienced a 16% reduction in the proportion of fatal crashes with a fatally injured driver whose blood alcohol level was 80mg. or higher. There was an 18% reduction in such crashes with a fatally injured driver whose blood alcohol level was 150mg. or higher.
The Netherlands
The Netherlands which has had a 50mg. limit for over 20 years has a lower rate of alcohol related road deaths than the UK, 1 in 15 compared with 1 in 7. In 1995 the Netherlands had 87 alcohol related road deaths out of a total of 1,334 compared with the UK's 540 out of 3,621.
Young People
The US also provides evidence of the effectiveness of reducing the limit to zero or 20mg. for drivers under 21 years of age. The proportion of fatal night-time, single vehicle accidents declined by 17 - 22% in the under 21 age group in those States which introduced such a level compared with a 2% reduction in those States which had not lowered the limit for younger drivers.
Since a road accident with a raised blood alcohol level is a major cause of death for young people, the introduction of an even lower level of 20mg. for under 21's is desirable.
'Hard Core' Problem Drinkers
Detection of the "hardcore" of problem drinking drivers would be improved if the limit was lowered to 50mg. and rigidly enforced.
Both Australia and USA provide evidence that lowering the legal limit affects drivers at all blood alcohol levels. The USA lowering the limit appears to have had a greater effect on higher than lower blood alcohol levels.
The evidence suggests that the proportion of problem drinkers is the same in the range of 50 - 80 mg. and 80 - 150mg. Lowering the legal limit to 50mg. maximises the value of random breath testing for detecting problem drinkers.
Public Support
In the UK and throughout the EU the vast majority of the population supports a lower legal limit. Almost eight out of ten of the population supports a lower legal limit and almost 4 out of 10 would support a zero limit.
Belgium, Spain, France, Italy, Portugal and Sweden have a lower legal limit than the UK. The German Government have announced that they will introduce a low limit of 50mg. in 1998.
Whilst the number of people killed in drink related crashes has fallen substantially since 1983 from a peak of 35% of all drivers and riders with blood alcohol levels above the legal limit, it has never dropped to the level of 15% of total road deaths which was achieved during the first year of the operation of the Act.
Since the improvement over recent years has been stopped, a fresh impetus is required which could be achieved by lowering the legal limit and giving the police greater powers.
It is difficult to estimate the number of lives which would be saved by a lowering of the limit and increasing police powers. Given the evidence from other countries it could well be between 100 and 300 lives.
However, the beneficial effects of the original introduction of the breathalyser in 1967 were greatly underestimated. Barbara Castle, the Minister responsible, hoped that up to 200 lives would be saved: in fact it was over 1,000. At a luncheon to mark the 30th anniversary of the introduction of the breathalyser, Baroness Castle commented:
"I didn't know how many lives I would save when I introduced the breathalyser until we got the first year's figures. Then we were absolutely astonished."
... a lower limit is needed ...