How much can I drink and still drive?
Discussion
I'm in Scotland, and it's quite noticeable the effect of the reduced limits. Our local station used to be pretty empty on Saturday and Sunday mornings - not so now. I counted 20 cars last Saturday morning and 18 on Sunday. So people aren't even taking the risk inside the village (furthest away house from the station is less than a mile).
I don't drink regularly - just meet up with friends once a month for an afternoon of drinking and eating. I stop drinking at 4pm (it's an hour on the bus, so try to keep my bladder empty!) but still won't drive until the next day. Not worth the risk (esp when a friend got 18 months in clink for falling asleep behind the wheel when drunk and causing injury to occupants of another vehicle).
I don't drink regularly - just meet up with friends once a month for an afternoon of drinking and eating. I stop drinking at 4pm (it's an hour on the bus, so try to keep my bladder empty!) but still won't drive until the next day. Not worth the risk (esp when a friend got 18 months in clink for falling asleep behind the wheel when drunk and causing injury to occupants of another vehicle).
ashleyman said:
I find this really interesting. I'm 26 and I've made it a point that I will never drink alcohol if I need to drive myself home. Thats my personal choice, its what I feel confident in doing. At least I know there is absolutely NO doubt that I can honestly answer 'have you been drinking tonight?' and then there will be a 0 breath test to back that up.
My friends who are around my age and maybe a little older all mock me for this decision and will always try to tempt me into having one or two drinks as 'you'll be ok' to drive home after - they don't seem to understand why I made that choice and are almost encouraging me to drink and drive. So far, I've stuck to my principle, except once where the wife offered to drive instead - she drank water and then drove a very drunk ashleyman home.
The next day again I was probably well over still so I didn't drive, she did. A lot of my friends seem to think that 3 or 4 hours sleep will cure them of alcohol in their system, they'll sleep (but its more a nap) at a friends house, then wake up a few hours later and drive themselves home probably still over.
I wonder if it's maybe a regional thing: I was referring mostly to my friends in the London area which is where I'm from - thinking about it, the few I know who don't mind a glass of wine or two when driving are mostly from more rural areas. My friends who are around my age and maybe a little older all mock me for this decision and will always try to tempt me into having one or two drinks as 'you'll be ok' to drive home after - they don't seem to understand why I made that choice and are almost encouraging me to drink and drive. So far, I've stuck to my principle, except once where the wife offered to drive instead - she drank water and then drove a very drunk ashleyman home.
The next day again I was probably well over still so I didn't drive, she did. A lot of my friends seem to think that 3 or 4 hours sleep will cure them of alcohol in their system, they'll sleep (but its more a nap) at a friends house, then wake up a few hours later and drive themselves home probably still over.
I used to live in a little town on the south coast of France, and I've recently moved to a different little town on the south coast of France. In both cases, almost everybody I know drink drives - nobody ever talks about it but it's pretty much accepted practice.
I started driving in 1958 and now I am amazed at how much drink we used to consume before driving home prior to that date in October 1967.
It was nor unusual to have several pints of bitter and a couple of scotches then drive home.
If ever a law was needed it was the drink-drive law. Not popular with everyone at the time, it soon became accepted as necessary when the casualties dropped, and quite a few people got banned and fined.
Really not worth driving after any booze now and the only losers have been the pub landlords.
It was nor unusual to have several pints of bitter and a couple of scotches then drive home.
If ever a law was needed it was the drink-drive law. Not popular with everyone at the time, it soon became accepted as necessary when the casualties dropped, and quite a few people got banned and fined.
Really not worth driving after any booze now and the only losers have been the pub landlords.
thecremeegg said:
I'll have a pint, no more. I wonder if after one pint if my reactions are any worse than someone twice my age that hasn't had a drink?
It's not reaction time that's the problem. What happens with alcohol is that judgement (among many other performance levels) is affected. If reaction times were important in driving then, one would assume, young drivers would be the safest on the road, rather than men aged 35 - 60.
Derek Smith said:
It's not reaction time that's the problem. What happens with alcohol is that judgement (among many other performance levels) is affected.
If reaction times were important in driving then, one would assume, young drivers would be the safest on the road, rather than men aged 35 - 60.
I expect men aged 45-65 are those most likely to be driving when over the limit on a regular basis. If so, what might that tell you? That they manage their drink better, or that drink-driving is not quite as big an issue as we are led to believe?If reaction times were important in driving then, one would assume, young drivers would be the safest on the road, rather than men aged 35 - 60.
getting a lift Just a couple of pictures, back in 1998 was in a landrover, getting a lift back to the camp we lived on in a place called sipovo, in north west Bosnia. We never made it back. The landrover crashed into a truck parked on the road and I was knocked out. ended up being airlifted to Sarajevo and then back to the UK to the wessex nurological for brain surgery to remove clots in my head. Nearly killed me.
drink driving ? its not worth it, really its not. It may cloud your judgement, delay your response that little bit that may mean the difference between an accident and a serve. I wasnt driving was in a landrover with 4 other people. we were lucky and I know that. Its so not worth it.
Attitudes have changed, even amongst the 45-65s, I think.
Back in the late 80s I was invited to dinner by my employers, at a restaurant 25 miles from home.
It never occurred to me to arrange transport. I took my company car. We had Chauffeurplan if anything went wrong.
I can still remember following the white line home.
At the same time I lived opposite a local bank manager. He regularly invited the managers of the other local banks to dinner at his home. They left at around 1am, and I started the myth that all their company cars had 9 doors.......that was how many slams I counted as each couple got into their car to roll home, blind drunk.
These days we organise who is going to be the dessicated driver, or book a taxi. Never occurs to us for one minute to drive after a drink. 5 years ago I might have had one. Not now.
Back in the late 80s I was invited to dinner by my employers, at a restaurant 25 miles from home.
It never occurred to me to arrange transport. I took my company car. We had Chauffeurplan if anything went wrong.
I can still remember following the white line home.
At the same time I lived opposite a local bank manager. He regularly invited the managers of the other local banks to dinner at his home. They left at around 1am, and I started the myth that all their company cars had 9 doors.......that was how many slams I counted as each couple got into their car to roll home, blind drunk.
These days we organise who is going to be the dessicated driver, or book a taxi. Never occurs to us for one minute to drive after a drink. 5 years ago I might have had one. Not now.
Has any research been done into how much it really costs someone who has an accident and gets a conviction for drunk driving and has the car written off.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
grumpy52 said:
Has any research been done into how much it really costs someone who has an accident and gets a conviction for drunk driving and has the car written off.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
Why do you think that? The issue of getting a car written off & costs associated with it are highly dependent on individual circumstances. As for other costs how do you see running into 10s of thousands? I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
cmaguire said:
Derek Smith said:
It's not reaction time that's the problem. What happens with alcohol is that judgement (among many other performance levels) is affected.
If reaction times were important in driving then, one would assume, young drivers would be the safest on the road, rather than men aged 35 - 60.
I expect men aged 45-65 are those most likely to be driving when over the limit on a regular basis. If so, what might that tell you? That they manage their drink better, or that drink-driving is not quite as big an issue as we are led to believe?If reaction times were important in driving then, one would assume, young drivers would be the safest on the road, rather than men aged 35 - 60.
Derek Smith said:
It tells us nothing about drink driving. The stats are just reports segmented via various age groups. An equally valid question would be how much better would that figures be if men aged 35-60 did not drink.
You could also argue that if the younger drivers are more problematic in spite of the fact the 35-60's are more prone to drinking and driving then more attention should be devoted to the younger drivers and their reasons.My take is the 1800 deaths per year will barely move now however much time, effort, propoganda and money is thrown at it and we should just accept it as a good thing and move on.
grumpy52 said:
Has any research been done into how much it really costs someone who has an accident and gets a conviction for drunk driving and has the car written off.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
There was an advert run some years ago in motoring magazines. It wasn't totally on how much money the hit is but on all the effects of having an accident whilst drunk. I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
There was a picture of the wife/girlfriend in an hospital bed with wires, tubes and VDUs. There was the bloke with various cuts and grazes with a police officer's hand on on his shoulder and the text mentioned losing the job, the car that went with it, the difficulty in getting alternative employment as public transport was an necessity, the cost of a season ticket (the advert would have more impact nowadays), holidays limited, the cost of insurance post disqual period for some years. The cost of a funeral for the Mrs was left out on grounds of taste.
There are also other problems. One chap in court claimed, and I assume correctly, that he was his mother's only form of transport and that he would be unable to get to her house/rest home without a car.
Just the disqual causes all sorts of problems. A rugby club mate ran a company with an ace salesman who was disqualled for totting up. Some of the staff were sacked as the orders dried. He was talking about moving to smaller premises.
So the costs would depend on who you were, but even so they are quite high.
Reg Local said:
128 people killed in 12 months. Imagine the furore if 128 people were killed every year on the railways. There would be a public enquiry, many millions would be spent on improving rail safety, lines and trains would be redesigned and people would think twice about travelling by train.
Total UK rail deaths2012-13 293
2013-14 314
2014-15 332
Dr Jekyll said:
Reg Local said:
128 people killed in 12 months. Imagine the furore if 128 people were killed every year on the railways. There would be a public enquiry, many millions would be spent on improving rail safety, lines and trains would be redesigned and people would think twice about travelling by train.
Total UK rail deaths2012-13 293
2013-14 314
2014-15 332
As such my post should read "Imagine the furore if 128 people were accidentally killed every year on the railways".
GT03ROB said:
grumpy52 said:
Has any research been done into how much it really costs someone who has an accident and gets a conviction for drunk driving and has the car written off.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
Why do you think that? The issue of getting a car written off & costs associated with it are highly dependent on individual circumstances. As for other costs how doy you see running into 10s of thousands? I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
You get hammered for insurance for 10 years ,in one case it leapt from £400 pa to £4500 pa .
The cost of transport for the length of ban ,12 month minimum.
The fine .
That is assuming you manage to stay in the same employment .
I would think in the 10 years after conviction £10k would be a minimum of extra costs .
grumpy52 said:
GT03ROB said:
grumpy52 said:
Has any research been done into how much it really costs someone who has an accident and gets a conviction for drunk driving and has the car written off.
I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
Why do you think that? The issue of getting a car written off & costs associated with it are highly dependent on individual circumstances. As for other costs how doy you see running into 10s of thousands? I would think it must run into tens of thousands over the 10years following the accident and conviction.
I can also see it in some circumstances costing much more.
You get hammered for insurance for 10 years ,in one case it leapt from £400 pa to £4500 pa .
The cost of transport for the length of ban ,12 month minimum.
The fine .
That is assuming you manage to stay in the same employment .
I would think in the 10 years after conviction £10k would be a minimum of extra costs .
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