Regulating drink driving to protect all road users Eu European - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

Regulating drink driving to protect all road users Eu European ean Tr Tran ansport Saf Safet ety Lec ecture e 2016 Richar ard Allsop Univer ersity Colleg ege e London

Ideally for road safety No No-one e inten ending to drive e would drink k al alcohol bef eforeh ehan and An And no-one e af affec ected ed by al alcohol wo would d dri rive So So ev ever ery driver er’s blood al alcohol concen entrat ation (BAC) would be e zer ero or near ear zer ero

Understanding and practice • Drink k driving within the e wider er chal allen enge e of al alcohol in societ ety • Alcohol an and cap apab ability to drive • Alcohol an and collision involvem emen ent • Es Estimat ating how much drink k driving contributes es to risk k to road ad user ers

Understanding and practice • How low the e limit on BAC should be • En Enforcem emen ent to det eter er from an and to det etec ect driving while e over er the e limit • How to treat eat convicted ed offen ender ers • How far ar we e hav ave e come e an and wher ere e we e might go on to from her ere

Alcohol in society • Alcohol provides es pleas easure e an and rel elief ef – but the e har arm an and suffer ering it can an cau ause e ar are e a a chal allen enge e to societ ety of which drink k driving is just one e smal all par art • For road ad saf afet ety we e should focus on red educing deat eaths, injury an and dam amag age e res esulting from driving af after er drinki king

Alcohol and capability to drive • Wel ell bef efore e the e motor ag age, e, bei eing drunk k in char arge e of a a veh ehicle e was as rec ecognised ed as as undes esirab able e – but law aws ag agai ainst it wer ere e har ard to en enforce – an and most drink-driver ers ar are e far ar from bei eing drunk • Res esear earch into the e ef effec ects on cap apab ability of modes est quan antities es of al alcohol al also beg egan an bef efore e the e motor ag age

Alcohol and capability to drive • By 1960, ev eviden ence e of ad adver erse e ef effec ects of ev even en low lev evel els of al alcohol upon cap apab ability to drive e was as clear ear – but ev eviden ence e of ef effec ect on involvem emen ent in collisions was as still ver ery limited ed • Th This ev eviden ence, e, mai ainly from lar arge e fiel eld studies es in the e USA SA, cam ame e first in 1964 – an and was as rei einforced ed in 2002

BAC and collision involvement 25 Collision risk relative to 20 zero BAC 15 10 5 0 0 0.5 1 1.5 Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) g/l

BAC and fatal collisions 50 Fatality risk relative to 40 zero BAC Maycock GB 1997 30 Zador USA 2000 20 Romano USA 2014 10 0 0 0.5 1 1.5 Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) g/l Maycock values below 0.5g/l added in light of panel discussion on 20161018

How much drink driving contributes to road risk Four mai ain sources es of informat ation: 1. 1. Road adside e survey eys of driver er BACs 2. 2. Driver er BACs meas easured ed during en enforcem emen ent 3. 3. Road ad user er BACs meas easured ed af after er co collisi sions 4. 4. Meas easured ed BACs of ki killed ed road ad user ers

Measurement after collisions • Ideal eally, af after er ev ever ery fat atal al collision, the e BAC of ev ever ery driver er, rider er an and wal alker ker involved ed should be e meas easured ed • Th This would en enab able e the e number ers of dri drink nk-rel elat ated ed deat eaths to be e rec ecorded ed • Th The e sam ame e might be e done e in due e course e for ser erious injuries es

Defining a drink-related road death SafetyNet project definition : : Deat eath within 30 day ays in a a collision wher ere e an any driver er, rider er or wal alker ker has as a a BAC ab above e the e leg egal al limit Th This an and much other er work k def efines es a a dr drink nk-rel elat ated ed deat eath in rel elat ation to the e leg egal al limit But we e should think k ag agai ain ab about doi doing s ng so! o!

Why we should think differently about what is drink-related • Har arm done e by drink-dri driving ng is no no res espec ecter er of the e leg egal al limit we e set et – e. e.g. In En Englan and for ev ever ery 4 deat eaths rec ecorded ed ab above e the e limit ther ere e is one e more e in a a collision involving a a dri drink nk-driver er bel elow the e limit • Our def efinition should include e al all the e har arm

Percentage of road deaths recorded as drink-related • A study for the e EC EC in 2014 found that at this should be e ab about 25%, %, but nat ational al es estimat ates es av aver erag aged ed 12.9% • In 2014 they ey ran anged ed from 5% % to 30% – ev even en in countries es using the e Saf Safet etyNet et def efinition the e ran ange e was as 9% % to 30% • So So per ercen entag ages es in Eu Europe e ar are e not yet et compar arab able e bet etween een countries es

Numbers of road deaths recorded as drink-related • But year ear-on on-year ear chan anges es in the e number ers rec ecorded ed ar are e compar arab able e if the e def efinitions do not chan ange • So So ETSC ETSC in its PI PIN program amme e has as compar ared ed an annual al av aver erag age e per ercen ent chan anges es in number ers of drink-rel elat ated ed deat eaths an and of other er road ad deat eaths over er the e per eriod 2001 to 2014

Tackling drink driving in 20 European countries 2001-2014 Differ eren ence e bet etween een av aver erag age e an annual al per ercen entag age e chan ange e in deat eaths rec ecorded ed as as dr drink nk-rel elat ated ed an and corres esponding chan ange e in other er road ad deat eaths 15% 10% 5% 0% EU20 average: -1.1% -5% -10%

How low should the limit be? • No lower er than an a a country is read eady to en enforce e strictly • Ex Excep ept in Sc Scan andinav avia, a, man any ear early limits wer ere e 0.8g/l or 1g/l • When en limits hav ave e been een lower ered ed, they ey hav ave e usual ally stay ayed ed lower er • Limits bel elow 0.2g/l ar are e har ard to en enforce e strictly – but an any limit ab above e 0.2g/l should be e consider ered ed for lower ering

How well do people understand the limit? • Citizens zens need need to o under understand and what hat the he law aw requi equires es of of them hem • For For the he BA BAC limit thi his ent entai ails cont continui nuing ng publ public c inf nfor ormat ation on keepi keeping ng pace pace with – the he changi changing ng dr drinki nking ng popul populat ation on – the he changi changing ng range ange of of dr drinks nks – the he changi changing ng dr drinki nking ng cul cultur ure

Enforcement of the limit • Any law aw that at is ab about life e an and deat eath should be e en enforced ed • Po Portab able e ev eviden ential al breat eath-tes esting dev evices es make ake ex exten ensive e road adside e tes esting prac acticab able • But it need eeds costly police e res esources es an and clear early def efined ed power ers

Enforcement of the limit to deter and to detect • To To det eter er – the e ai aim is to max aximise e per ercei eived ed risk k of det etec ection • To To det etec ect – the e ai aim is to max aximise e the e probab ability that at the e tes ested ed driver er is over er the e limit • Pu Publicised ed det etec ection an and conviction contributes es to det eter erren ence

Enforcement – a need for research to inform practice • Authorities es an and Po Police e ar are e fac aced ed with choices es ab about the e bal alan ance e bet etween een to det eter er an and to det etec ect • We e al all need eed to kn know more e ab about ef effec ects of differ eren ent ki kinds an and lev evel els of en enforcem emen ent upon drink k driving beh ehav aviour

Treatment of convicted offenders • Ex Exceed eeding the e limit is ser erious – it can an hav ave e ef effec ects like ke man anslau aughter er an and griev evous bodily har arm • So So those e found to hav ave e done e so should feel eel conseq equen ences es – like ke len engthy community ser ervice, e, disqual alificat ation from driving, confiscat ation of the e veh ehicle

Treatment of convicted offenders • It is not just a a mat atter er of punishmen ent – the e offen ender er will still be e ar around • So Some e offen ender ers feel eel rem emorse e an and ar are e read eady to be e hel elped ed not to reo eoffen end when en they ey continue e or res esume e driving • Other ers’ lives es ar are e so af affec ected ed by al alcohol that at they ey should not res esume e