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Driving while Drinking

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What are the effects of alcohol on driving?

Driving a vehicle is a very complex activity that demands proper decision-making, total concentration, good co-ordination and rapid reflexes. In order to drive safely, it is essential to be alert, aware and able to make quick decisions in response to a constant rapidly changing environment.
Alcohol alters the ability of the brain and body to function normally. It interferes with even the most experienced driver’s ability to drive safely.
When alcohol is consumed, many of the required skills to drive safely such as judgment, concentration, comprehension, coordination, visual acuity, and reaction time become impaired. (Anelli Xavier, 2013)

The severity of alcohol-induced impairment on driving depends on the amount of alcohol present in the bloodstream, this is based on a person’s blood alcohol concentration (BAC) percentage. People begin to feel the effects of alcohol when their BAC ranges between 0.03% and 0.059%. (2014 Motor Accident Commission South Australia)
Drink driving is a factor in about 18 per cent of all fatal crashes in NSW. (Transport for New South Wales, 31 May 2013)

Studies have shown that when under the influence of alcohol, drivers are not able to respond to stimuli as quickly as when they are sober. An individual needs more time to respond to situations and hazards. If someone is driving a car, the perception of distance is increased. For example, in an ordinary scenario, a driver would be able to respond to

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