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Drinking and driving
Drink driving is a well publicised illegal offence
and widely frowned upon, yet it is still taking
place. Check out the latest figures from the Christmas
drink drive enforcement 2010 from Kent Police
statistics.
Medway Council's Safer Journeys Officers actively support the
THINK! anti-drink drive
message from the Department for Transport (DfT) all year round and
work with community safety partners to help drivers
realise they don't have to feel
drunk to be dangerous and over the limit.
The legal limit in the UK is 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100
millilitres of blood. A person's weight, sex, age, metabolism,
stress levels, what is in their stomach already, and the type
of alcohol consumed, are all factors that dictate how
individuals react to alcohol, with no two people being the
same.
Alcohol is commonly consumed as a light relaxant or an aid to
make you feel a bit more confident (Dutch courage). These side
affects alter your driving in the same way by making your reactions
slower and your judgement impaired.
In real terms this means you will:
- increase your stopping distance when braking;
- have poorer judgement of speed and distance;
- have a reduced field of vision.
At the same time you may feel over-confident and more
likely to take risks when driving, which increases the danger to
all road users, including yourself.
"With no failsafe guide to keep under the legal alcohol
limit, it is better to take a zero tolerance approach when
driving. In other words stick to the soft drinks altogether.
If nothing else it'll be a cheap night out! "
Su Ormes, Principal Road Safety Officer
The morning after
When you stop drinking, the alcohol level in your body continues
to rise for many hours. Therefore, if you have drunk heavily the
night before, you will almost certainly not be fit enough to drive
the following morning.
Visit the morning after site
to find out more.
Help to reduce drink driving
If you would like any road safety posters or leaflets, please do
not hesitate to contact the Road Safety Team. Also check out
what local pubs are involved in Coca Cola's
Designated Driver Scheme.
Information and advice
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