Imagine on a very hot, windy day in the middle of summer and someone decides to
build a fire in a forest. How foolish, you agree? It is just as stupid to drive
after you had too much to drink. As a matter of fact, the forest does re-grow. A
victim in a wheelchair may be for life!
| How
does alcohol affect a driver? Alcohol is quickly absorbed into the
bloodstream. Vital
functions to perform these ordinary tasks are affected: |
One drink
- one crash too many!
|
| Co-ordination
- slow to brake or steer. |
| Judgement
- fails to give way, side-swipes
objects or hits kerb. |
| Reaction
- drives through red lights, late braking
in an emergency. |
| Vision
- blurred vision causes confusion and
crashes. |
Apart from these handicaps some drinkers display a false sense of bravado and
get overconfident. Many fool themselves, believing that drinking black coffee,
eating greasy foods, taking cold showers or fresh air, is going to fix the problem.
|
Nothing can speed up the process of sobering.
Time
is the only factor that reduces the level of alcohol in the blood to
render a person fit to drive. Chewing gum or peppermints cannot
beat the breathalyser.
|
|
| Damage
to public property must be paid for by the driver at fault. Insurances
normally don't cover drivers, who drive intoxicated. |
Ladies get affected much quicker than
men and can tolerate less. Likewise, small people get intoxicated quicker and
affected more. Before consuming any alcoholic drink a responsible
driver knows, how much
alcohol is his or her limit. Play it safe, if unsure! Drink less or better ZERO. Insurance companies
may
exclude liability, if the driver is found to be over the limit. It can be a
very costly mistake.
On a full licence the BAC (Blood Alcohol
Concentration) in Australia is .05 o/oo. Two glasses of beer in an hour can
bring you to that limit. One drink every hours after that, will keep you on
the brink. In Australia, new drivers on L and P plates must have zero alcohol
in their blood when driving. (Check the laws
in your country).
Drugs also can affect your driving. Alcohol and drugs
combined may form a very lethal dose to make a driver unfit to get behind a
wheel of a motor car. Check with your doctor and read the label
on your medications.
