Driving is one of the things most of us do every day, which is why we tend to take it for granted and forget how complex it really is. But when you’re behind the wheel you need total concentration, good coordination, rapid reflexes, and the ability to make correct judgements and decisions.
Driving after drinking alcohol or taking drugs, including prescription medication, diminishes a person’s ability to judge speed and distance, reduces their co-ordination and concentration causing them to react more slowly, impairs their vision and perception of obstacles and gives them a false sense of confidence that leads to increased risk-taking behaviour.
Blood/breath alcohol concentration (BAC) is a measure of the amount of alcohol in the body. Even at 0.05, studies show reactions are slower than at 0.00 BAC. It is important for motorists to understand that many factors can affect your BAC, such as your weight, gender, what you have eaten, your general health and most importantly how much alcohol you consume and what you are drinking.
It is also difficult to accurately monitor how much alcohol we consume due to:
It’s also important to remember that your BAC may continue to rise after you stop drinking. Learners, P-plate, and commercial drivers effectively can’t drink at all if they want to stay under the limit of 0.00. Just one drink can put them over the legal limit. All other drivers need to stay under 0.05.