10/11/06
Drinking alcohol and then driving were the dangerous ingredients for a deadly cocktail, Community Safety Minister John Kobelke said today.
Despite compelling evidence on how alcohol affected the brain and the ability to drive, there were still people throughout Western Australia who continued this lethal behaviour.
Launching the Western Australian Road Safety Council's new drink driving campaign, Mr Kobelke said alcohol acted as an emotional loosener giving people a false confidence that they were perfectly all right to drive.
"Alcohol influences and affects drivers' judgement or ability to make rational decisions, particularly when it comes to driving," he said.
"Alcohol affects decision-making, reaction times, speed and distance judgements, concentration and perception, balance and alertness.
"It can also give drivers a false sense of confidence encouraging them to take more risks.
"The television commercial shows how alcohol affects the brain and interferes with the way the brain communicates. It also shows how alcohol affects a person's ability to assess risks, make decisions and handle complex situations - all imperative to driving."
The Minister said more than a fifth of fatal crashes in WA involved a driver with a blood alcohol content of more than 0.05 per cent and about 20 per cent of those crashes involved drivers three times over the legal limit of 0.05 per cent or more.
He said studies showed that drivers were twice as likely to crash with a BAC of 0.05 per cent, seven times as likely to crash with a BAC of 0.08 per cent and 25 times more likely to crash with a BAC of 0.15 per cent.
In the last financial year in WA, more than 15,000 drivers tested by police were over the legal limit and a third of those were repeat drink drivers.
Alcohol-related fatal crashes cost the WA community nearly $75million a year and the hospital and rehabilitation costs of serious injury alcohol-related crashes are even more.
"The costs of personal distress suffered by family and friends and the emergency services personnel are immeasurable," Mr Kobelke said.
He warned road users that the police would be targeting drink driving from now until the end of the summer school holidays and people who thought they would not be caught should think again.
The Minister also urged people to plan ahead before going out for a few drinks.
"If you are going to drink, plan not to drive," he said.
"Arrange a skipper for the evening, ask someone to come and collect you, get a taxi or stay overnight."
Mr Kobelke said supporting the State-wide mass media campaign was a campaign for Aboriginal people in the North-West, including a television advertisement produced by Aboriginal people through Goolarri Media Enterprises in Broome.
He said that at the recent Australian Video Producer Association Awards in Melbourne this television advertisement won first place in the television commercial category, a tremendous recognition for such an important community initiative.
Minister's office: 9222 9699
