4 days Ago By [email protected] (James Rodger)
There are calls for stricter policing over Christmas as drink driving hits a record high. As we head towards Christmas , motorists and road users have called for a clampdown and crackdown on dangerous drink driving across the country. The call comes as the British Medical Association urges for a reduction in the blood alcohol content limit, which currently stands at 80mg per 100ml of blood - the highest in Europe.
The proposed reduction would bring England and Wales in line with Scotland's limit of 50mg, implemented in December 2014. "In the decade since the limit was reduced in Scotland, research has shown that it has had no effect on lowering the number of accidents despite the move being explicitly designed to make roads safer," Auto Express editor Paul Barker editor warned. READ MORE Met Office says 'severe' weather shift will start in England from tomorrow He said: "Drivers need to believe they will be caught if they drink and drive.
Otherwise, the deterrent is meaningless, and people will keep taking risks. We urgently need more proactive enforcement and high-visibility campaigns, to raise the perceived likelihood of detection. Currently, we're relying on people to do the right thing, and the only way they'll ever be caught is if they have an accident.
Which of course everyone thinks they are too good to ever have.” RAC road safety spokesman Rod Dennis said: “It’s clear motorists want to see something done differently to tackle the scourge of drink-driving, which is still responsible for the loss of far too many lives every year. “Shockingly, Government data shows we’re back to a similar rate of fatalities caused by people drinking and driving as we were in the late 1980s, and that a significant number of drink-drive offences are committed by reoffenders.
“We hope the issue of drink-driving will be addressed in the Government’s soon-to-be-published road safety strategy, as clamping down on it in the right way could save hundreds of lives every year.”.
