In general, one alcoholic drink probably won’t make you too tipsy to drive. But more than one and you could be in big trouble. In fact, drinking a second alcoholic beverage before getting behind the wheel can double your chances of a fatal accident, warns a new campaign from the United Kingdom.
The Department for Transport launched its “Think!” campaign after research found that a startling one in 10 people surveyed said they would drive after having more than one drink. The figure jumped to almost one in five, or 19%, among men aged 18-34, while roughly half, or 51%, of drivers said they would not consider drinking any alcohol at all before driving.
Drunk driving deaths have significantly decreased in the United Kingdom over the past 30 years, said Road Safety Minister Andrew Jones, but the problem persists. “Every death or serious injury is one too many,” he said. “The best way for drivers to keep themselves and other road users safe is simple: don’t drink and drive.”
Sarah Sillars, chief operating officer of the Institute of Advanced Motorists, added that there are common misconceptions about the dangers of drinking and driving. “Many of the people we work with on our drink-drive rehabilitation courses aren’t repeat offenders,” she said. “Many are drivers who thought that a second one couldn’t hurt.”
Though one drink alone may not put you in significant danger, Sillars says it’s easy to drink more than you realize. So she urges drivers to play it safe. “Getting that second drink calculation wrong is easily avoided just by remembering that if you drive, don’t drink,” Sillars said.