40% of Irish motorists say it’s OK to break speed limit
Of the 1,000 motorists questioned in the driver attitudes and behaviour study, 11% admitted they had driven after consuming alcohol in the last year, with more than a third consuming two or more drinks.
The survey found that men, outnumbering women by more than two to one, and older drivers, particularly those over the age of 65, were the biggest culprits.
Road safety officer Noel Gibbons said he was disappointed with the results and said the number of motorists drink-driving was “very high”.
He urged motorists not to drink and drive, and said there seemed to be a misunderstanding among people of what the alcohol limit is.
“One drink might not affect you but it might affect somebody else,” Mr Gibbons said.
“It depends on your body as well. If you’re tired, the alcohol will affect you more so, again. Our advice would be not to drink any alcohol when you’re driving.”
He urged people to be cautious the morning after a night of drinking.
“A bottle of wine is four glasses and that takes nine hours until the wine is out of your system. People might be driving the next day not aware that they still have alcohol in their system which would be impairing their driving,” Mr Gibbons said.
The study found that almost one in three drivers (31%) admitted they had spoken on handheld mobiles while driving. About 16% admitted to texting while driving and 7% said they checked apps.
Mr Gibbons said the actual number of people using their mobile could be higher as “people are ashamed to admit they use their phone while driving”.
One in three drivers were also found to be speed-camera “manipulators”, driving more slowly only at speed camera locations.
“Its a good thing that people are changing their habits. Of the 194 people killed last year, 30% of those fatalities took place in the areas where the safety cameras are. So to get people to adjust their behaviour around those areas will mean less and less lives will be lost.”
