Drinking and Driving 

 

During the time that has elapsed between the original version 
of this article (December 17th 1998) and your reading it now: 

 

• thousands, possibly millions of people will have died on the roads, 

• worldwide, as a direct result of drinking alcohol and driving

• many others will be disabled for life​

• some will be unemployed as a result of their crime

​

So how much do you drink regularly? Or do you just drink on special occasions? 

Do you ever 'take a chance'? After all, it's only a ten minute drive home...

 

And what about your friends? How many of your friends enjoy a drink after work or before going out at Christmas, Thanksgiving or some other time?

 

To find out whether you are as aware as you think... Or to learn about something that might just save a lot of misery, read on to find out the extent of the risk. how drink affects you, whether you are in a high risk group and more...

 

The tone of this page might be a bit 'preachy' - but there is no 'nice' way to deliver the message - if you have any doubt about the dangers watch the video at the bottom of the page.

 

The extent of the risk

A significant percentage of all deaths on the roads of Great Britain and are directly related to alcohol. Although the total number of road deaths directly related to alcohol has fallen in the last 30 years, one in six road deaths involve drivers or riders are over the legal limit.

 

It's estimated that between 15 and 40 percent of all road accidents are influenced by excessive alcohol consumption with a total of over 3000 people a year making up the death and serious injury statistics. Even a small amount of alcohol will impair reaction time and judgment of speed and distance. If you are double the legal limit you are statistically over 20 times more likely to have a collision. In 2010 the figures for drink driving fell - but there's no room for complacency.

 

Despite what you might think, or how short the journey is, you're not safe behind the wheel when you have been drinking - full stop! Although drink driving claims many innocent victims, it also kills many drunk drivers. 

 

The effect of alcohol

If the answer to the question is 'No', see a doctor. But if you are 'normal' and you get mad from time to time, you will probably get mad on the road sooner or later; a survey carried out by the UK motoring organisation Green Flag 2007 found that eight out of ten drivers experienced some sort of road rage once a week or more.

 

Do you ever feel that other drivers should pay more attention? Have you ever been frustrated when stuck in traffic? Have you ever suggested to another driver (politely) that perhaps they could have done something differently? If the answer to any of these questions is 'yes', check your 'Road Rage' potential by completing the ten questions below and then read on to find out what to do in road rage situations.

 

At the bottom of this page you will find a four minute clip of a real road rage incident in Australia wher a car driver completely lost control.

This quiz was adapted from the the original by Karen E Hamilton, Professor, George Brown College, Toronto Canada. For these questions you will need to jot down your answer 'a, b, c, d or e' for each question and then use the info to calculate where you are on the road rage scale. there are no wrong or right answers - just your answers.