More than 50 suspected drink driving offences as clampdown continues

MORE than 50 motorists were caught on suspicion of drink driving over Christmas Day and St Stephen’s Day, according to garda figures.

However, gardaí warned a road safety clampdown would continue over the of the festive season. “Garda enforcement activities in all areas of road safety will continue, with drink driving being prioritised for enforcement,” said a garda spokeswoman. She said provisional figures indicated more than 50 suspected drink driving offences occurred over the two holy days. “An Garda Síochána continue to encourage people not to drink and drive and to drive within the speed limits,” she said.

Prior to the Christmas break, garda chiefs said that their road safety campaign for Christmas and the New Year would focus on drink driving, speeding and not wearing seat belts. Garda figures show that around 375 suspected drink drivers were being recorded every week, in comparison with an average of around 250 before the introduction of random alcohol testing on July 21.

Since then, and until the end of November, an estimated 7,835 drink-driving incidents were recorded.

Almost 40 fewer people died on roads between July and November of this year, compared with the same period last year.

Gardaí yesterday repeated advice to people travelling back from long journeys to families and friends. “Tiredness contributes to road fatalities and injuries, so drivers should plan all journeys and stop in a safe place if they feel at all tired and take a short nap or break away from the road,” said a spokeswoman.

A report published last month by the Road Safety Authority showed that alcohol was a contributory factor in 37% of all fatal crashes and a factor in 62% of single vehicle crashes in 2003. The study showed almost a quarter of drivers killed had under the legal level of alcohol and 90% of drivers, where alcohol was a contributory factor to their death, were male.