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
Drinking and driving is said to be the primary contributor to automotive related deaths. “By law, a driver is considered to be impaired by alcohol if his or her blood alcohol content is 0.08 percent or higher” (Holzmueller). As a matter of fact, “in 2010, about 86 percent of all fatalities alcohol-involved crashes were in cases where a driver or pedestrian had a BAC of .08 or higher” (“The Economic and Societal Impact of Motor Vehicle Crashes, 2010” 147). Laws and penalties have been created and applied in recent years that make it more difficult to get away with drinking and driving. If drivers are charged with alcohol-impaired driving, “they face suspension or revocation of their license” (Holzmueller).
Alcohol-impaired driving fatalities were 1,028 in 2008 for the state of California (Century Council). Of those deaths, 68% of the drivers were considered “Hardcore Drunk Drivers”; drivers who had a BAC level of 0.15+ (Century Council). Unfortunately, the drivers who got behind the wheel of those vehicles now have to deal with the fact that they slaughtered a person(s), because they made the choice to drive their car when they knew they had consumed alcohol.
When you get into the car to drive home or go to a store, don't you ever think about how you can make the drive there more interesting? A way to ease everything is to possibly take a few shots of alcohol or have a few beers before you leave to your destination. If you’re bored, drinking seems like a fun thing to do especially when you’re driving. I heard that that being intoxicated makes everything more flashy and can make your vision super blurry. That sounds like a fun challenge while you’re driving. You see a lot of anti drinking and driving advertisements and just think you would love to try that. One day you are just bound. Some say alcohol can lead to a wonderful world of addiction. In that case, just the smell of an alcoholic drink can make some alcoholics go crazy. As soon as you introduce alcohol into the way you drive, everything will seem so much better. But alcoholism can possibly make for tight fund, so get cheap beer..
People in the Houston area, and throughout the state of Texas, are commonly arrested for suspicion of drunk driving. In fact, the state’s Department of Public Safety reports that there were 89,256 people arrested for driving under the influence in 2012 alone. Often, those facing such charges choose to forego hiring an attorney, and instead handle their legal issues on their own. Even for those facing first-time offenses, however, it may be useful to obtain legal representation.
People seem to get the wrong impression that alcohol is classified as a stimulant or “upper”, but in actuality alcohol is a depressant. The short term physical effects depend on the blood-alcohol level. It ranges from random changes in mood to complete lack of coordination, impaired vision, lack of balance and slurred speech. However, larger amounts of blood alcohol can strongly effect brain functioning and eventually cause a person to “black out”. In examining the thought process for drinking and driving behavior, Kulick and Rosenberg (1999) found that while the majority of their college student sample frequently drove after drinking, these students rationalized this behavior in a variety of ways. The most commonly found reasons for driving under the influence of alcohol were the strong desire to get to a specific destination (e.g., home), convincing oneself as being only slightly intoxicated, and/or believing
Alcohol consumption can cause impairment while operating machinery or driving. Alcohol has be proven to affect two specifics part of the brain. The prefrontal cortex and the hippocampus. The prefrontal cortex is the center of attention while the hippocampus is the center of learning and memorization. While driving under the influence of alcohol, our attention (which is controlled by the prefrontal cortex) on the road is affected as well as our self-awareness. A second of inattention on the road can result in a deathly event. Thus, we can say that the specific deficit in driving behavior that makes alcohol consumption dangerous is the lack of
19. According to Zuckerman, which of the following people will have the MOST difficulty in their career or home relationships?
In 2013, 10,076 people were killed in drunk driving incidents. Out of those people, 65% (6,515) were drivers, 27% (2,724) were passengers, and 8% (837) were non-passengers (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Over half of those fatalities (67.1%) involved blood alcohol levels over .15% (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). The legal blood-alcohol content is .08%. Drunk driving caused 31% of deaths in car crashes in 2013 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). In 2012, 402 people were killed by alcohol impairment in North Carolina (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). These numbers, though they seem astonishing, have been cut in half since 1991 (“Drunk Driving Statistics”). Even though the number of fatalities has been lowered, that number is not low enough. Most drunk drivers are repeat offenders. Lives are being taken because of the careless attitude of the drunk drivers. Drunk driving is selfish; those who commit this crime do not think about the extreme consequences of their actions. In North America it is estimated that 1-5 drivers has been drinking and 1 in 10 is legally impaired on any Friday or Saturday night (Root). Many groups, including MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving), are fighting to stop drunk driving. Unfortunately, drunk driving cannot be stopped. People will always commit this heinous crime. The numbers may go down, but unfortunately there will always be a number. The only way to continually decrease the amount of lives lost is to increase punishments for drunk driving.
While I was researching about Drinking and Driving, I found a few articles that show the reader complete information about the risk that represent Driving under the influence of the alcohol. Those articles discuss the results of driving while being drunk, some of the results can be going to jail, but I believe that going to jail is one of the softest consequences that an individual can have for drinking and driving. I could not found a lot of information that I can use as opposition, in other words I could not found a lot of information that supports drinking and driving. My goal in this research paper is to convince the reader that alcohol should be sell until a certain hour during the day, and after that certain hour every liquor store should quit selling alcohol until the next day, also to add some sobriety checkpoints at strategic points to control the traffic in a better way.
Even after as few as two alcoholic beverages, the effects of alcohol may begin impacting the ability of drivers to safely operate motor vehicles. Reduced muscle control may affect a person’s ability to track moving objects, such as other vehicles, as well as his or her ability to steer, maintain lane position and brake appropriately. Drinking alcohol may also impact a motorist’s speed control. Additionally, drivers who have consumed alcoholic beverages may also have trouble identifying and responding to emergency situations while driving, detecting signals and focusing on the task of
Alcohol affects your body and your driving skills very much. Alcohol is a depressant so it slows down your system. This includes your brain. Slowing down your brain causes the driver to get distracted easily and can quickly change their mood. Drinking also weakens your immune system increasing your chances of getting ammonia. Drinking too much can also make you get cancer in places like the mouth or throat. Drinking a lot could also result in liver failures and increased chances of heart attacks. The more you drink, the more lethal the heart attack could be (unknown name1).
Drinking and driving has become one of the worst habits that people have picked up on throughout time. Many argue that while being under the influence of alcohol it doesn't have any effect on their driving skills. In fact, while being intoxicated many individuals tend to believe that they are invincible and get behind the wheel not realizing that fatal consequences could be a result of their wrecklessness. This world wide problem that we face is one of the major causes for some of the most severe car accidents that occur internationally.
Alcohol is proven to be a depressant because it slows down the functions of the central nervous system of human beings affecting their judgment, concentration, coordination, visual perception, as well as reaction time. Therefore, the normal brain function is delayed and an individual will not be able to perform normally. Consuming alcohol prior to driving greatly increases the risk of car crashes, highway injuries, and vehicular deaths. The greater the amount of alcohol consumed, the more likely a person is to be involved in a fatal accident. The main purpose of this research is to highlight on the danger of drunk driving and establish awareness of the fatal risks caused by driving under the influence. Moreover, suggest solutions to help minimize
My family and I were involved in a drunk driving accident. On our way to the lake, my dad pulled up in front of a car to help a lady whose car had stopped. When suddenly we see the lady’s car get hit by a truck, which makes her car come towards us and crashes with our car. As a seven-year-old, this was very traumatizing and now I know that the driver with the truck was drunk. Harris county has the highest number of alcohol related motor vehicle accidents than other cities. . Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) says, “alcohol alters an individual's vision, reaction times, perception of distance, and judgment of one's abilities” (“Policy &Amp; Positions”). New drinkers need to be aware of their blood alcohol concentration because driving under the influence leads to fatality, financial and law
After consuming one drink of an alcoholic beverage, there is immediately dangers that are now included. Alcohol alters judgement, clouds reaction time, and lowers the ability to focus on multiple things at one time, which is all traits needed when operating a vehicle. On alcoholrehabguide.org it states, a BAC of 0.02 includes a lack of judgment,