Citation

Robinson CD. Proc. Int. Counc. Alcohol Drugs Traffic Safety Conf. 1981; 1981: 1354-1363.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1981, The author(s) and the Council, Publisher International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Two years after the introduction of random breath testing in Victoria, a survey was undertaken of a random sample of 344 persons of driving age. The aim of the study was to assess the effects of the measure on drinking habits, and to explore drivers' perception of random breath testing. The final sample was made up of 164 females and 180 males, with a mean age of 37 years. Of this sample 81.4% held a current driving licence, 84.5% said that they drank alcoholic beverages, at least on rare occasions, and 3.2% admitted convictions for drink-driving offences. It was found that 31.7% of the sample had seen a random breath test unit in question, but only 6.7% had ever been breath tested by a random testing unit, with 1.7% being found to be over the legal limit of 0.05% BAC after testing. There was evidence that a majority of subjects were concerned about being stopped by a random testing station. However, other results suggested that this concern was not reflected in the drinking habits of subjects, nor in their perception of the probabilities of detection by a random breath testing unit if they drove after drinking. These results were discussed in terms of their implications for continued use of random breath testing as a countermeasure against drink-driving. In particular, the value of the measure as a deterrent was discussed, and the effects of the measure were considered in cost-effectiveness terms. (Author/TRRL)