The Triumph Dolomite Club - Discussion Forum

Does anyone have any thoughts on the new lower alcohol limit that was introduced last week in Scotland,
which brings us in line with the EU?
Should the rest of the UK adopt this limit?







thanks,

Ian.

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Is this the "Drink drive" limit?

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1997 TVR Chimaera 450

Yes it is the so called drink drive limit.







Ian.

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In that case it should be zero, or pretty damn close.

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1997 TVR Chimaera 450

Im a proffesional truck driver. Its very simple dont drink and drive at all its not worth it Ive seen too many drink drive accidents. Tractor boy.

just out of curiosity, what is your limit ?

in Oz we run at 0.05 BAC, which is about 2 drinks in an hour iirc

This is a very common drink and drive vehicle in Holland.

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You can't really say how many drinks you can have in a certain period of time Stu. I've heard people say you're allowed a pint of beer or a pint and a half or 2 glasses of wine, which is nonsense. It all depends on the individual's size and other factors. So the best course of action is to have no alcohol if you intend to drive. Simples!

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1997 TVR Chimaera 450

woah woah ! that is 0.08 BAC. That is very high, I've been tested (1988) and recorded 0.055, which I honestly thought was too high for me to be driving (limit then in NT was 0.08, so I was okay). The limit is now 0.05 BAC, which is still too high imo.

Understand the drink<>body relationship.

Jeroen, those vehicles look awesome, please tell me they are not just for tourists

Scotland has adopted the EU limit which is the same as Australia.


As Mart has said there are all sorts of theories about how many units of alcohol you can safely consume but there are so many variables in the equation that this
can vary enormously from person to person, the old theory of one unit/hour was rubbish and the new one of one unit/two hours is not really any better.


What made me start this thread was the opposition to lowering of the limit from some road safety groups, which I thought was curious.





Ian.

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Realistically I can't see this making a bit of difference to road safety.

I've known a quite a few people who have smashed cars after a drink and they all had one thing in common, they were utterly wasted. I've never known anybody who has had a pint and then promptly had a car crash, with lowering the limit all I can see happening is people getting charged due to being slightly over enthusiastic with the sherry trifle after dinner. The other thing I've noticed is that the people who do drive drunk are usually repeat offenders, hell some of them weren't insured and at least one didn't have a driving license either, a lower limit will not deter them. It's far from uncommon for me to be driving to work down the back roads and find a farmer coming the opposite way in a Defender on the wrong side of the road because he hasn't quite recovered from the previous night, he'll never get caught because the police rarely stray off the main roads.

There is no good way to calculate how much alcohol you will have in your system as it depends on your body type and what you're drinking. Usually if I was going to the pub after work I'd have a single pint, have a coke afterwards and not get in the car for 4-5 hours, I'm not sure if that WAS correct in the first place or if it still is now the new limit is in place.
I suppose there is an increased risk now that people will think "well, I can't have a single drink without being over the limit anyway, so why not have 3 or 4? I still feel fine after a few drinks so what's the difference?"

I know it's 0% tolerance in Japan, and if you get caught you lose your license and your job, and good luck getting re-employed over there once you've been fired!

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1976 Triumph Dolomite 1850HL "Trevor, the Tenaciously Terrible Triumph" - Rotten as a pear and dissolving into a field in rural Aberdeenshire.
1977 Triumph Dolomite 1300 "Daisy, the Dilapidated Dolomite of Disaster" - Major resto, planned for completion 2021.
1983 Triumph Acclaim L "Angus, the Arguably Adequate Acclaim - On the road as a daily driver.

Drink drive limits are a bit like speed limits....one size fits all is the problem, when it manifestly doesnt.

I'm quite capable of driving safely around most local urban roads at between 35 and 40, this is the natural traffic
flow speed, observed by returning police patrol vehicles at shift end too. Yet the posted limit is of course 30.

Similarly I'm quite capable of driving home safely after a nosh at the local gastro pub washed down with a pint of cider.

If I had the same pint after a lot of hard work on an empty stomach I probably wouldnt be, so wouldnt drive.

Its all about common sense....

Jonners

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The only certain way to behave is if you intend to drive, don't drink.

The individual may well have perceptions of what is acceptable for them, but an inarguable fact is alcohol dulls the senses, reduces co-ordination and increases reaction times. There is no threshold to this effect, it is directly proportional to the amount of alcohol in the body. So whilst a driver with the influence of a small amount of alcohol may well be able to demonstrate they are able to competently control a car, they may not be so lucky should the actions of a third party become involved. A child stepping off a kerb for instance, and a split second of reaction time can make the difference between a close shave (no alcohol) and a dreadful 'accident' (just the one).

Would being under any limit other than zero be sufficient to settle your conscience in such a situation? It wouldn't for me.

"Don't drink & drive... You'll spill it!"

I remember seeing that as a bumper sticker years and years ago and chortled to myself at the time...

However, I think that if you drink you really should not drive! There are so many of us that get the booze inspired confidence to do almost anything when we've had a few sherberts and as we drive regularly we think that we will be ok...!!! In reality though, we will not be ok and those around us will not be ok either...!!!

For all those times people get away with drink driving (whether that be legally or mortally!) there are all too many times that people do not and that kind of tragedy is just not worth a nights frivolity...

DON'T DO IT...!!! You cannot undo what could be done!

I actually think there is a silent majority in Scotland AGAINST this, I'm against it and not afraid to say so.
Listen to the rubbish being spouted by most of the people for this lower limit:

It brings us into line with the rest of Europe - yeah right, the rest of Europe actually pay attention to that law - utter nonsense

Too many people are killed and injured in drunken driver incidents - so how is lowering the limit going to stop drunk people driving? They'll still drive!

I've often enjoyed a pint or maybe two if the beer is low abv (3.7%) and driven home on my local 30 mph roads, now it's no alcohol at all if driving. That's no business to the bars, the restaurants, the sports clubs. I'm not going to a bar and having an orange juice, and most of my friends are like minded.

I wasn't even aware this was being introduced - where was the public consultation on this?

While we are at it why don't we reduce the speed limits to 20 mph nationally, remember speed kills.
In fact ban the car, if we didn't have cars people wouldn't be killed by them. If one life is saved by banning cars then it would be worth it, who on here is against saving a life? Dare you speak up?

The Scottish government has introduced a 50mph speed limit on the main road north, enforced by average speed cameras, because the road is dangerous.
FIX THE BLOODY ROAD, if Scotland had spent money on the road instead of 1 billion pounds on trams we would have a dual carriageway with underpasses and overpasses - but hey speed kills, so lower the speed limit and fine people for breaking it. Sounds familiar.