Citation

Desapriya EBR, Nobutada I. J. Traffic Med. 2000; 28(1-2): 7-20.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2000, International Association for Accident and Traffic Medicine)

DOI

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PMID

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Abstract

Background: For the prevention of alcohol related accidents, it is important that legislation should clearly indicate that drinking and driving do not mixed together. Per se legislation legal blood alcohol limits has played an important part in this connection. This method of measuring the driver's blood alcohol content was introduced in Scandinavia a long time ago, at the end of the 1930s, and is now accepted in most part of the world. In addition, considerable epidemiological evidence from various studies which measure the impact of alcohol in road crashes have pointed out the risk of a crash in relations to blood alcohol level. The BAC level legally permitted is a public policy decision by legislators, while scientists can present experimental and epidemiological evidence indicating the BAC level at which psychomotor skills are deteriorate and accident probabilities increase. There is considerable epidemiological evidence to support the fact it is clear that the risk of alcohol impaired drivers being involved in traffic crashes rises with increasing BAC's. By contrast, the evidence on the BAC at which a driver should be regarded as committing an offense has been the subject of much debate and various legislative decisions. Historically, per se laws specify blood alcohol concentration (BAC) levels which are a compromise figure intended to reflect both the point at which a driver becomes significantly more likely to be accident involved than a comparative driver with a zero BAC and that which is politically acceptable, but falls within the BAC region of increased accident liability. Therefore, the per se legislation in most countries has not kept pace with scientific progress. Recommendations: This study suggests that if saving lives in the road is an important issue, then, passing laws that incorporated scientific and epidemiological studies, be very necessary. And therefore, alcohol related traffic legislation's' might reinforced with lower legal limit, where human driving capabilities are really impaired. At least the lowest politically acceptable per se limit should be selected based on close collaboration between medicine science and law. This has been major theme of this study. Conclusion: After reviewing evidence and benefits of the lower legal limit this study suggest that establishing a lower legal limit for all countries, can be expected to produce further declines in the percentage of drivers killed and injured as a result of alcohol impairment.

Keywords

Ethanol impaired driving