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New Zealand is 30mg/100 ml for those aged under 20. Despite this, almost a quarter of the 31,000 people prosecuted for drink driving last year were under 20 they certainly dont make up a quarter of all drivers. All of this goes to show that reducing the BAC limit can only be a part of a strategy to reduce road trauma. One aspect where American researchers look at New Zealand as a case study in drink driving statistics going the wrong way is the age at which drinking alcohol is legal. In the United States the drinking age is 21 and the Federal Highways Authority estimates this law saves roughly 1,000 young American lives each year.
Sobering thoughts
Should we reduce our drink driving limit? Peter King takes a look at the complex alcohol issue.
On the face of it, reducing the drink driving limit should appear to be a no brainer but in fact there is more to it
BAC has one of the worst crash rates in the developed world, Britain, also with an 80 BAC, has one of the lowest. The proportion of road fatalities with alcohol as a contributing factor in New Zealand is 27%, but, despite a 50 BAC and lower overall crash rates, Australias is 31%. If linking a lower BAC to a reduced crash risk werent confused enough, there is even debate between countries about the crash risk increasing with the amount of alcohol consumed. Hundreds of simulator experiments around the world have found that alcohol doses increase crash risk from the rst sip on. On the other hand, an American statistical argument based on sampling around actual crashes suggests that adults aged over 30 years, with very low BACs (below 50mg), reduce their crash risk to below the level of ordinary sober driving! Ultimately a limit is only as good as the perception that it will be enforced.
Italy has a 50 BAC but it is not policed with much enthusiasm. Studies in nations such as Canada, Austria, and Denmark which have reduced BAC levels have found that there is typically a honeymoon period when drivers are conscious of the new limit and increased attention. But over time, unless there are signicant on-going changes to the drinking or driving environment, those who ignored the old limit start to ignore the new one too. One of the key problems with drink-driving is young people. Young people start with a high relative crash risk from the outset, which is why the drink-driving limit in