Is it time to reduce drink drive limits?

[synewsguy]

I for one would have no issues what so ever with the introduction of a zero tolerance on alcohol.

 

I never touch a drop of alcohol prior to getting behind the wheel of my car, never have and never will. It simply isn't worth the risk what so ever.

 

As for alcohol still being in the system the morning after a night out. It is a drivers responsibility to ensure that they only have a certain amount to drink and stop drinking a number of hours prior to driving to ensure that they are within the legal limit to get behind the wheel. Even after alcohol has completely left the body as we all know hangovers can linger which too could cause accidents due to lack of attention.

[JFKvsNixon]

I for one would have no issues what so ever with the introduction of a zero tolerance on alcohol.

 

I never touch a drop of alcohol prior to getting behind the wheel of my car, never have and never will. It simply isn't worth the risk what so ever.

 

As for alcohol still being in the system the morning after a night out. It is a drivers responsibility to ensure that they only have a certain amount to drink and stop drinking a number of hours prior to driving to ensure that they are within the legal limit to get behind the wheel. Even after alcohol has completely left the body as we all know hangovers can linger which too could cause accidents due to lack of attention.

 

What if you have a couple of glasses of wine in the evening, at what time do you drive the next day to ensure that you have a zero level of alcohol?

[Zamo]

The level of alcohol people choose to have in their body is nobody else's business. What is other peoples business is whether a person is fit to drive. We should therefore tests for fitness to drive i.e. test reactions, coordination and decision making. If someone fails then they are unfit and it shouldn't matter if it was caused by alcohol, taking drugs (legal or otherwise), a disability, nervous disposition or being too old. If you are unfit then you are unfit... let's widen the focus and get all the crap drivers off the road.

[synewsguy]

What if you have a couple of glasses of wine in the evening, at what time do you drive the next day to ensure that you have a zero level of alcohol?

 

You go by the averages which show that it takes approximately 1 hour for a unit of alcohol to leave the body. I use this general rule plus add an additional couple of hours for my own comfort. Should it only be a couple of glasses of wine in the evening then there shouldn't really be a problem the next morning should you stick at that amount and leave a suitable gap inbetween the consumption and driving the car.

 

---------- Post added 22-12-2014 at 14:06 ----------

 

You go by the averages which show that it takes approximately 1 hour for a unit of alcohol to leave the body. I use this general rule plus add an additional couple of hours for my own comfort. Should it only be a couple of glasses of wine in the evening then there shouldn't really be a problem the next morning should you stick at that amount and leave a suitable gap inbetween the consumption and driving the car.

 

The way I see it is that there is no valid reason what so ever really to get behind the wheel of a car when under the influence of a substance (alcohol) that could impair judgement and the overall quality of your driving. The effects of alcohol differ from person to person therefore the easiest and safest way to rule it in my opinion would be to have a zero tolerance policy on it full stop.

 

I do feel that in order for this to be a success the government need to better educate drivers on how much is safe the night before and the length of time required between drinking and driving in order to be completely free of alcohol the next day.

 

Legal Standard Breath Testers are available on the internet for as little as £10 as well. My son is a responsible driver however has one just for his own reassurance as he heavily relies on his driving license for work therefore prefers to be safe than sorry.

 

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Black-Police-Digital-Breath-Alcohol-Tester-Analyzer-Breathalyzer-test-LCD-UK-/151248738480?pt=UK_Health_Beauty_Mobility_Disability_Medical_ET&hash=item23372098b0

[JFKvsNixon]

You go by the averages which show that it takes approximately 1 hour for a unit of alcohol to leave the body. I use this general rule plus add an additional couple of hours for my own comfort. Should it only be a couple of glasses of wine in the evening then there shouldn't really be a problem the next morning should you stick at that amount and leave a suitable gap inbetween the consumption and driving the car.

 

According to the NHS website two standard glasses of wine would be just over 4 units of alchohol, and 2 large glasses of wine would be 6 units.

 

As you said it takes around an hour to break down each unit so as you said you should be alright, or to put it more accurately the average person would be alright.

 

The problems with this assumption is that there are many factors that effect the rate that you clear alcohol from your system such as your age, sex, weight, metabolism and what medications that your on.

 

So it's not inconceivable that someone would test positive for a small amount of alcohol the morning after having a couple of glasses of wine, even though they'd be perfectly safe to drive.

 

Would you risk the social stigma and even the potential loss of your career that a conviction for drink driving would bring on whether or not your body has managed to clear the 2 glasses of wine the night before?

[synewsguy]

I'm in touch with how long it takes for alcohol to leave my body but like I said I generally add a couple of hours on just to make sure due to the factors that you have listed. I know that if I had say 2 lagers in the house the night before that as long as this happens before I get in bed which tends to be 11pm on a work night, then I know I will be completely alcohol free by the time I get behind the wheel at 7:00am the next morning.

[JFKvsNixon]

I'm in touch with how long it takes for alcohol to leave my body but like I said I generally add a couple of hours on just to make sure due to the factors that you have listed. I know that if I had say 2 lagers in the house the night before that as long as this happens before I get in bed which tends to be 11pm on a work night, then I know I will be completely alcohol free by the time I get behind the wheel at 7:00am the next morning.

 

No, you do not know that you'll be completely free of alcohol, although you'd be safe to drive. The vast majority of the time, yes you'd be fine, but you're not guaranteed to be completely free of alcohol. Metabolisms speed up and slow down all the time as well as other things that may effect you.

[milquetoast1]

Two: On the proviso that the lower limit is adhered to how many accidents will be prevented? The data should exist for accidents where the Police attended on the alcohol levels present, whether below or above the limit. For those accidents where alcohol was deemed to be a contributing factor it should then be pretty simple to work out how many accidents occurred due to alcohol levels present between the new proposed limit and the current one. If that number is significant* then change the limit, if not then there really is no point.

 

jb

 

* Where the level of significance is set out (justifiably, to prevent bias) before carrying out the exercise.

 

This is key.

 

Whilst it is undeniable that there is a link between alcohol and judgement, it doesn't mean that people with 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood will cause more accidents than those with none, or people with 80mg of alcohol will cause more accidents than those with 50mg. It might be the case, but there is no reliable evidence to make a judgement.

 

I recall some research that tried to prove that point, but it had to spuriously adjust for the fact that drivers with small amounts of alcohol usually make a concious effort to compensate and drive more safely. Sort of missing the point.

 

It might be that a zero tolerance policy of alcohol and driving actually gives worse outcomes in terms of harm and resources, but it may well be that we tolerate these worse outcomes because we decide it's important to publicly declare ourselves as disapproving of any alcohol and driving.

 

It's apparent that many here fall into the latter category, whilst I want to see some firm evidence before approving of resources spent in perusing a zero-tolerance policy that could be better spent on other areas of driving safety.

[ANGELFIRE1]

In Scotland they have limited it to roughly a half pint. Apparently England to follow. . Also I n Scotland the mouth wash etc wont work. They say no excuses about mouth wash bla bla. I say it is a good thing. 1 pint is to much.

 

---------- Post added 21-12-2014 at 00:16 ----------

 

Scotland's new drink-drive limit explained by forensic toxicologist

4 December 2014 Last updated at 11:21 GMT

 

New lower drink-drive limits will come into force in Scotland on Friday.

 

The change from 80mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood to 50mg means drivers could be over the legal limit after consuming far less alcohol.

 

Dr Hazel Torrance, a forensic toxicologist at Glasgow University, told BBC Scotland's Reevel Alderson several factors determine the concentration of alcohol in an individual's blood.

 

Her advice was to err on the side of caution. "If you know you're going to be driving then do not drink at all," she said.

 

 

The Jocks I know out in the sticks take little notice of the original blood count, so it's a fair bet now the limit is even less the status quo will remain.

 

Angel1.

[biotechpete]

This is key.

 

Whilst it is undeniable that there is a link between alcohol and judgement, it doesn't mean that people with 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood will cause more accidents than those with none, or people with 80mg of alcohol will cause more accidents than those with 50mg. It might be the case, but there is no reliable evidence to make a judgement.

 

I recall some research that tried to prove that point, but it had to spuriously adjust for the fact that drivers with small amounts of alcohol usually make a concious effort to compensate and drive more safely. Sort of missing the point.

 

It might be that a zero tolerance policy of alcohol and driving actually gives worse outcomes in terms of harm and resources, but it may well be that we tolerate these worse outcomes because we decide it's important to publicly declare ourselves as disapproving of any alcohol and driving.

 

It's apparent that many here fall into the latter category, whilst I want to see some firm evidence before approving of resources spent in perusing a zero-tolerance policy that could be better spent on other areas of driving safety.

 

What do you make of the NICE report I linked to earlier?

 

It attached some multiple of risk of accident for 50 and a greater multiple for 80, but I don't know how reliable that is.