driver-qualification-handbook-english

2Key points summary: Alcohol and driving• Alcohol is a contributing factor in about 20 per cent of fatal crashes and fiveper cent of those causing injury.• More than half the drivers killed have a BAC of 0.15 or more – three times thelegal limit of 0.05 for full licence holders.• Staying below 0.05 is hard as not everyone takes the same number of alcoholicdrinks to reach this limit.• Women and people of both sexes who don’t weigh a lot get to higher BACsfaster.• Men are more likely to drink and drive and more likely to be involved inalcohol-related crashes.• Alcohol reduces your ability to concentrate and to look for and respond tohazards when driving.• Alcohol slows your reflexes when you need to take action such as braking.• Alcohol increases the risk of a crash. Even at a 0.05, crash risk is about twicewhat it is at zero.• The safest BAC for driving is zero.• About 57 per cent of fatal crashes in ‘high alcohol hours’ are alcohol-related.• High intake of alcohol occurs mostly weeknights (particularly Thursdayand Friday nights) and weekends.• Drivers with alcohol in their blood are not only more likely to crash, but morelikely to die if severely injured in a crash.• Staying with a zero BAC when driving gives you an edge. It is the safest BACfor driving regardless of your licence type.50Driver qualification handbook