Lowering the drink driving limit

im thinking, maybe the 1 pint limit as it stands encompasses the 'few the night before' range?....zero would absolutely rule out those contemplating driving for a couple of days post sesh...
 
Blue Maverick said:
Did a job of the M57 a few years ago, crash actually stopped traffic on the other side of the carriageway, so a big traffic jam ensued, this was the night after England had played in a semi final. Lots of police around, as the the traffic was allowed to move a car didn’t, copper walked up and the guy in the drivers seat was asleep, he was still steaming from the night before, needless to say he was nicked, had he not been in that jam he’d have drove pissed to his job, hope the **** got banned and lost his job.
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When I lived up in the North of Scotland the police used to do a regular campaign leading up to Christmas (and throughout the year) of just stopping random drivers on their way to work and testing them, usually on Monday's and Friday's. They'd catch loads over the limit. I think one year it was in the hundreds over the course of the year.
 
The Light Was Yellow Sir said:
Whilst on the face of it, it seems like an eminently sensible thing to do, I would very much like one of the government/AA/RAC to show the figures for accidents/injuries involving people over zero, but under the current limit.

I say this because, as we all know, and whatever the limit, Peter Pisshead will have 6 pints, 4 shorts and a couple of shots and will still get into his car.
We therefore risk shifting the headlines from:
Mr or Mrs XX, smashed into 3 people on a zebra crossing whilst being 6 times over the legal limit to reading they were 11 times over the legal limit, which won’t benefit safety, whatsoever.
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True but it might stop some of the edge cases. Someone goes out for a meal and has a large glass of wine instead of a small one then decides to get a taxi rather than drive. Over a cumulative period those edge cases will prevent accidents, it’s a statistic certainty.

Anything that discourages people from drink driving can only be a good thing.

Of course you’ll always get the selfish brain dead fuckwits like @oldhamblue who’ll just crack on and drive pissed up anyway but no law will prevent scum like that.
 
Blue Mist said:
6,000 bollocks. A quick Google search show an estimate of 260 in 2024.
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Some people are just poor drivers full stop.
They have little to no consideration for other road users (incl pedestrians).
eg If I choose to walk to the nearest shops, car drivers should appreciate that by me not using a vehicle to get to where I am going frees up a little bit more road space for them to do as they choose.
 
hilts said:
So forever it has been deemed okay for people to drive slightly pissed(haha on that term) and definitely impaired.

Sure sure

So let's reduce it further to save lives like in Scotland cry the hard of thinking.



AI Overview


No, reducing the legal blood alcohol limit in Scotland to 50mg of alcohol per 100ml of blood did not lead to a reduction in road traffic accidents,


Now nunptiy posters may scream but yeah pissed up people are cunts in their never ending stupidity when that isn't even the discussion but let's change something that will make no difference.

So what causes accidents

Speeding - yet we allow cars that can go over 100mph or accelerate rapidly. Is there any need for either ? No. Do we do anything? No

Tiredness- we work long hours, there is no limit on how long someone can drive except professional drivers who drive too long. Do we do anything? No

Distraction - taking your eye off the road yet we have billboards and flashing signs all.over the place Do we do anything? No

Loud music - yet cars have loud sound systems. Do we do anything ? No

Distraction in cars like hands free mobiles or huge sat nav screens Do we do anything? No

Pedestrians doing stupid fucking things like walking out.into the road.

And then just general cuntish dangerous driving

Old people who literally have no idea what they are doing anymore and often have very slow response times and poor eyesight.

Now if someone has had a pint of Fosters when they do any of the above it's because they are pissed up cunts(pmsl) say the hard of thinking.

If they do it with or without a Fosters then whatever happens happens anyhow.

But some pillocks want to put it down to a weak lager, some want to put it down to a shandy and some of the really hard of thinking want to put it down to a sherry trifle:-)

Cuckoo
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Some cars achieve speeds much higher than the drivers ability to control them.
 
Bigg Bigg Blue said:
The thing a lot of people are missing here is it really won't make a jot of difference as their are no police to enforce the law.
I remember when I was younger you would often see a police car parked up near a pub just waiting to see somebody getting into their car pissed, these days you never see a copper at all.
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Not missing anything. The Gov know that they can never police it to the nth degree, but will accept that most are law abiding and will see it a a deterrent
 
crooky said:
Pretty sure you can ride a bicycle over the limit. You just have to be in some form of control rather than under a predetermined limit.
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No you can’t. It’s an offence. The maximum penalty for cycling whilst under the influence of drink or drugs is a £1,000 fine. This is also the case for careless or inconsiderate cycling. The maximum penalty for dangerous cycling is a £2,500 fine.
 
denislawsbackheel said:
No you can’t. It’s an offence. The maximum penalty for cycling whilst under the influence of drink or drugs is a £1,000 fine. This is also the case for careless or inconsiderate cycling. The maximum penalty for dangerous cycling is a £2,500 fine.
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What does the law say about riding a bike while drunk?​

Rule 68 of the Highway Code says you must not “ride when under the influence of drink or drugs, including medicine.”

Specifically, this part of the Highway Code is covered in Section 30 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. It is a criminal offence to ride a bicycle on a road or public place while in an unfit state through drinking alcohol or taking drugs.

The law states:

“A person who, when riding a cycle on a road or other public place, is unfit to ride through drink or drugs (that is to say, is under the influence of drink or a drug to such an extent as to be incapable of having proper control of the cycle) is guilty of an offence.”
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In simple terms: if you’ve had enough alcohol (or drugs) that it affects your ability to safely control your bike, you are breaking the law.

Unlike motorists, cyclists aren’t subject to the same drink-driving limits or breathalyser tests – but that doesn’t mean the police won’t intervene. If they believe you are a danger to yourself or others, you can be stopped, fined and even prosecuted.

What are the penalties for “drunk cycling”?​

If you are caught cycling while drunk, the penalties can include:

  • A fine of up to £1,000 (or up to £2,500 for dangerous cycling)
  • Possible court proceedings
  • A criminal conviction
While you can’t technically lose your driving licence for cycling drunk, if you cause a crash you could face a civil claim. You could be sued for any injuries or damage you cause to someone or their property.




As long as you're not in an unfit state to ride your bike you're basically fine as long as you don't do anything stupid. You can't get breathelysed and you can't lose your driving licence.
 
crooky said:


What does the law say about riding a bike while drunk?​

Rule 68 of the Highway Code says you must not “ride when under the influence of drink or drugs, including medicine.”

Specifically, this part of the Highway Code is covered in Section 30 of the Road Traffic Act 1988. It is a criminal offence to ride a bicycle on a road or public place while in an unfit state through drinking alcohol or taking drugs.

The law states:


In simple terms: if you’ve had enough alcohol (or drugs) that it affects your ability to safely control your bike, you are breaking the law.

Unlike motorists, cyclists aren’t subject to the same drink-driving limits or breathalyser tests – but that doesn’t mean the police won’t intervene. If they believe you are a danger to yourself or others, you can be stopped, fined and even prosecuted.

What are the penalties for “drunk cycling”?​

If you are caught cycling while drunk, the penalties can include:

  • A fine of up to £1,000 (or up to £2,500 for dangerous cycling)
  • Possible court proceedings
  • A criminal conviction
While you can’t technically lose your driving licence for cycling drunk, if you cause a crash you could face a civil claim. You could be sued for any injuries or damage you cause to someone or their property.




As long as you're not in an unfit state to ride your bike you're basically fine as long as you don't do anything stupid. You can't get breathelysed and you can't lose your driving licence.
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The ultimate penalty for riding a bike pissed up is death and it is much more likely to happen than driving a car pissed up because bikes don't have crumple-zone safety cages, multiple airbags and a whole myriad of other safety features designed to protect the idiot driver from themselves.
 
bluenova said:
Just had a look, and there was some meta-analysis a few years back, which suggested that at the current legal limit (0.8), drivers were 13 times more likely to be involved in a fatal car accident.

After a single drink, it was already 3.5 times more likely, and at 0.5, it was 6 times more likely.
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Statistics can say anything. What was the sample size.
Have you looked at similar statistics based on age, eye sight, tiredness , unroadworthy vehicles, mobile phone use etc
 
halfmist said:
Statistics can say anything. What was the sample size.
Have you looked at similar statistics based on age, eye sight, tiredness , unroadworthy vehicles, mobile phone use etc
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That was a meta study where they've combined as many different papers as they can find.

You're absolutely right that all those other factors have an impact on accidents, but I was replying to a post asking if there was any research on alcohol consumption and accidents. I'd put money on an old, tired, blind person, driving a car with dodgy breaks, and using a mobile phone, while drunk, is probably even more likely to cause an accident.

I believe the alcohol rules are being considered as part of a bigger package of ideas, and age and eye sight tests were mentioned today too. Over the years big drops in road deaths have come from car safety improvements, regulations about roadworthy cars, alcohol limits, mobile phone bans, campaigns to discourage driving while tired etc., so it's likely any improvements will come from a similar range of sources.
 
crooky said:
Pretty sure you can ride a bicycle over the limit. You just have to be in some form of control rather than under a predetermined limit.
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Shows how daft the rules are. No ban for mobility scooter or e-bike. However if it is an e scooter they can throw the book at you and attach it to your license. I happened to be on mine at New Brighton this morning in the cycle lane with my wife on her e-bike behind. We were both going at slow speed with helmets on. In all fairness the two young officers who stopped their car to have a word were very reasonable and warned me that if I carried on further along the Prom other officers were doing checks and there was a good chance they would take it off me. Checking up at home we are now the only country in Europe other than Holland that bans them. All down to politicians faffing around for the last 3 years deciding what to do about them.
 
Johnny Mars Bar said:
To the people justifying driving when pissed - how about you post your real names and addresses on here if there’s nothing wrong with it eh
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There has only been one who has admitted to it.
However, I am sure there are others on the site who have been over the limit and who have read the thread, but don’t want to admit it for all the shit they then get.
Whilst not condoning the guy who fessed up, at least he was willing to put his hand up and admit it, many others won’t, though I don’t blame them.
Oh and for the record if we are going out to meet friends, the deal with my Mrs is always,I drive there, she drives back, so don’t read this as some sort of subliminal confession.
 
halfmist said:
Shows how daft the rules are. No ban for mobility scooter or e-bike. However if it is an e scooter they can throw the book at you and attach it to your license. I happened to be on mine at New Brighton this morning in the cycle lane with my wife on her e-bike behind. We were both going at slow speed with helmets on. In all fairness the two young officers who stopped their car to have a word were very reasonable and warned me that if I carried on further along the Prom other officers were doing checks and there was a good chance they would take it off me. Checking up at home we are now the only country in Europe other than Holland that bans them. All down to politicians faffing around for the last 3 years deciding what to do about them.
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The problem with the laws on e scooters and e bikes is they were written decades before the things were invented.

On the one hand there’s the glorified kids toys that go a few mph that are technically illegal to use on the public streets, and on the other hand there’s the powerful electric motorbikes that any drug dealer or Uber eats idiot can zoom around on without license plates or registration.

It’s obviously insane and needs sorting out.

I’m a cyclist and I can’t stand those electric motorbike things. It’s unfathomable to me that they should’ve be treated as a motorcycle as far as the law is concerned.
 
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