30% rise in drink driving incidents

FILE PHOTO

Despite all the hoopla, promises, checkpoints on all major roads and extensive media campaign, drink driving remains the leading cause of accidents over the first three days of the New Year holiday road safety period – aka. The Seven Days of Danger.

Police report a 30% rise in drink-driving arrests up to last Saturday. 6,000 breathalysers and radar guns have been put into service around the country to help curb the road toll – officially the ninth worst in the world, according to the WHO.

In the first three days of the SDOD (Seven Days of Danger), for this current campaign, there were already 1,633 accidents with drink-driving responsible for an astonishing 41% of incidents and 27.2 blamed on speeding.

As usual, motorcycles figured heavily with nearly 75% of the incidents involving motorbikes and 11.6% involving pick-up trucks.

The seven days of danger continues until Thursday this week with tonight and tomorrow expected to register a peak in the seven days’ toll numbers.