Drink limit ‘broken millions of times’

Press, 28 December 1985, Page 6

Drink limit ‘broken millions of times’

PA Auckland An expert on the effects of alcohol has calculated that New Zealand drivers exceed the blood-alcohol limit about 30 million times a year. Dr Dick Batt, professor of biochemistry at Massey University, makes the point in submissions to the Government working party set up to rewrite the liquor laws.

Professor Batt is director of the university’s alcohol research unit His calculations mean that a drinking driver has one chance in 3492 of being killed or injured in an accident

By contrast, he says, the odds against winning $5OO or more in a Golden Kiwi lottery is one in 3472. “Clearly drinking and driving is safe for most people who break the drink-ing-driving law.”

Professor Batt concludes that if most people driving with excess alcohol in their blood have not had an accident, and are unlikely ever to have one, the drinking and driving legislation is a simplistic solution to a complex question. His figures are based on two surveys, he said. In one, held several years ago in Palmerston North, half of those leaving a hotel in the evening during one week exceeded the limit. If they had all driven home, the law would have been broken 225 times.

Multiplying that by the 2776 licensed premises and by 52 weeks gave him more than 32 million infringements for a year—excluding licensed and “bring,-your own” restaurants.

The other survey was in Adelaide, where 2.6 per cent of 30,000 drivers tested by researchers were over the

A similar level of drunkdriving in New Zealand would mean, he says, that there were more than 29 million infringements a year. Professor Batt has also calculated the chance of being caught in New Zealand.

In 1983, 18,000 motorists were caught over the limit. His figures therefore suggested that the chances of apprehension were about one in 1600.

Professor Batt suggests there should be attempts to identify drivers who are at risk to both themselves and others.

“Just a glance at accident statistics shows that the 15 to 24-year-olds are overrepresented. "While this' age-group is 18.3 per cent of the population, it contributes 40 per cent of the road deaths and

58 per cent of traffic injuries. “These people are both inexperienced at driving and are generally inexperienced drinkers.”

In his submission, Professor Batt refers to differential legal limits introduced in some Australian states for learner drivers. In Victoria and Tasmania, where the maximum permissable blood-alcohol limit is 50mg per 100 ml, novice drivers must return a zero reading or be booked. In Queensland, he says, the differential is 50 and 20; in Western Australia, 80 and 20, and in South Australia, 80 and 50 is being considered.

Professor Batt says: “If the introduction of legislation for high-risk drivers proves to be effective, the need for blanket legislation over the whole community will need to be assessed.”