Problems with Drinking and driving

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).

The average BAC for fatal accidents is at actually at 0.17%. This seems like a more logical target for new laws then 0.08%. Furthermore, Stone asks “Who would want their children in a car driven by someone who has consumed three, four, or even more beers in an hour” (Stone 46)? I couldn’t agree more. However, this common argument from the pro-0.08% side is more like a parent responsibility question. They use this to manipulate our emotion by putting an innocent child in an improbable and unrelated situation. She also goes on to state, “A study at Boston University found that 500 to 600 fewer highway deaths would occur annually if all states adopted 0.08%” (Stone 47). On the other hand, a similar study at University of North Carolina shows no significant change after their adoption of 0.08%. Which study is correct? Most likely, both have some truthfulness. It could be either way depending on the state.

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.

It only takes one alcoholic beverage to lessen your ability to respond to things that happen abruptly while you are driving. Some effects of alcohol can include blurry or double vision, impaired thoughtfulness and slowed reactions. The amount of alcohol that one has consumed can be measured by the amount someone has in their blood. BAC is an acronym for blood alcohol concentration. Once you take a drink, there is no way to guess what your BAC is. In Canada, the maximum legal BAC fo is 80 milligrams of alcohol in 100 millilitres of blood (0.08). Driving with BAC over 0.08 is a criminal offence. The Zero BAC law means that certain drivers cannot have any presence of alcohol in their blood while they drive. These are all drivers age under 21 year of age, if caught your driver 's license will be suspended on the spot for 24 hours and if convicted, your driver 's license will be suspended again for at least 30 days and you will receive a $60-$500 fine.

     ?Alcohol?s effects are progressively more noticeable as the blood alcohol concentration increases. At a BAC of .02 to .05 percent the effects are almost entirely pleasurable. The drinker feels relaxed and sociable. There may also be some modest impairment of reasoning or memory and general reduction in caution. A BAC of .05 to .07 produces a state of excitement. The drinker begins to suffer from what may be a slight but nonetheless noticeable impairment of balance, speech, vision, reaction time, and hearing. Judgement and self-control are also effected. The driver?s behavior is apt to become more aggressive. In general, the drinker feels stimulated and highly capable. In reality his or her ability to safely perform tasks such as driving that require quick reactions, concentration, and good judgement has been significantly reduced.

People like to go to parties and have fun all the time and what’s a party without alcohol, right? The problem with drinking at parties, however, is that many don’t know that they have become drunk and end up driving around after they leave the party. Drunk driving is dangerous and those driving that have high blood alcohol content or concentration (BAC) increases their risk of causing or being a part of accidents such as vehicle crashes or highway injuries (“Driving,” n.d.). The article “About Drunk Driving” (n.d.) states that every 53 minutes on average, someone is killed in a drunken driving crash and every 90 seconds, someone is injured.

Drivers whose BAC is between .01 and .08 is only 5 percent of all highway deaths. The agency predicts that a driver with .05 BAC is 38 percent more likely to crash than the driver who is clear-headed. 38 percent sounds like a lot, but is it really worth to cost that much money and resources to prevent it? Law enforcement never comes free, and the government’s resources are limited. Shouldn’t government spend their limited resources on other worthy

“At a BAC of 0.08 percent, muscle coordination is poor and the driver will have problems concentrating and controlling the vehicle, will have short-term memory loss, will have problems processing information (for example, signal detection), and will show impaired reasoning and depth perception.” (Wulffson,

Blood tests measure the number of grams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, and breath tests measure grams of alcohol per 210 liters of breath. In most states, you can be convicted of "drunk driving" when either level is at .10 percent or higher. I feel they should lower the level to .08 in all states. In California and Florida level of impairment is .08, why not in all states?

The first key aspect in why the BAC should be lowered to 0.06 is because even people with a BAC of 0.02, their driving is affected. As stated by Dr. Dinh-Zarr, “Even a BAL of 0.02% affects driving ability and increases the likelihood that drivers will be involved

Abstract This writing is on the many arguments that arise about the blood alcohol concentration limits around the country. Should the limits be lowered, keep them the same, and is there too much of a risk involved by lowering (BAC) limits? Costello (2014), and the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), report other areas of concern such as, injury prevention and safety countermeasures. That scenario will be the focus of the (BAC) limits presently being lowered throughout many states across the U.S. There will be a review of the public’s viewpoint concerning the reduction in these limits. A look into the legal system’s involvement with (BAC) limit changes. There are numerous attorney’s around the world fighting for driving under the influence (DUI) and driving while intoxicated (DWI) offenses to be dropped. Also, the many counter-arguments raised by attorneys, the public and National Transportation Safety Board statistical reports on injury prevention outcomes and alcohol related incidences being reduced post-law.

Drinking while driving is a very dangerous thing to do especially when the person who is driving can harm someone else without intending to do so. However, I consider it to be a very irresponsible thing to do because a person has a choice to do good or bad and understands the consequences for committing such an act. The document talks about that the way they determine their data is based on a couple of different factors such as, time of day, day of week, type of crash, vehicle type, age, sex, previous driving violations and more. The reason for this is because not every driver that gets pulled over by law enforcement or gets into a car accident gets tested on their blood alcohol level making it a bit difficult as to why that happened in the

A lot of people do not take drinking and driving serious because they take they can make it home safe, but really they either get in wrecks or pulled over before ever making it home. “In 1996 there were 17,126 alcohol-related traffic fatalities, representing 41% of all traffic fatalities that year. In addition, more than 321,000 persons were injured in crashes where police reported the presence of alcohol involvement.¨ ()

Undoubtedly, the legal limit for drinking while driving desperately must be reconsidered. Driving after consuming any amount of alcohol is negligent and hazardous. The concern of drinking and driving is a state law; therefore, the rules and laws may vary among the states. Regardless, drinking while driving is an enormous concern in all 50 states and getting behind the wheel of a vehicle after consuming any amount of alcohol should not be tolerated under any circumstances. “The amount of alcohol in the bloodstream is called Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC). It is measured in milligrams percent. In most states, drinkers are presumed to be legally impaired if they have a blood alcohol concentration of 0.08% or higher. This is the same as one drop of alcohol in 1,200 drops of blood. While this may seem a small amount to worry about, a blood alcohol concentration of 0.30 can cause a person to go into a coma, while a blood alcohol concentration level of 0.40 could easily kill you” (Chaves County DWI Program). A surprising statistic to most people is, on average about three drinks will put an individual over the legal limit. One drink is considered 12oz beer, 3oz of wine, and 1oz of hard liquor (Arizona Department of Public Safety). Many people get behind the wheel, after having just a few drinks, believing that they have

Driving under the influence or DUI is the crime for driving while under the influence of drugs or alcohol. To be charged with a DUI, you must have a blood alcohol concentration or BAC of 0.08% or more for drivers 21 years of age or older. If you are under the age of 21, a BAC of 0.02% can be cited for a DUI. States such as Arizona or North Carolina have a “zero tolerance” policy for underage drivers. In these states,