Throughout December, in partnership with Safer Roads Humber, we carried out a campaign to reduce the incidence of drink and drug driving on our roads and reduce drink and drug drive related collisions and injuries.
1055 drivers found themselves providing breath tests in our December 2016 Drink Drive campaign in the Humberside Police region.
134 of these breath tests were carried out following collisions on the roads of the area. A further 921 were carried out on drivers who were stopped by police officers during the course of their duties.
Out of the 134 breath tests carried out following collisions 11 of them were positive, these drivers will be summons to appear at court and face a driving ban and the consequences of driving while under the influence of alcohol.
Out of the 921 breath tests carried out on drivers stopped by officers 32 of them were positive.
Drivers under the age of 25 are an area we are most concerned about when it comes to collisions as younger drivers remain proportionately more likely than their over-25 counterparts to fail a breath-test for driving under the influence of alcohol. This age range also represents nearly a quarter (22%) of all the casualties that are killed or seriously injured in the Humberside region. As such, young people remain a priority group for our local road safety partnership, Safer Roads Humber.
Of the breath tests we completed 189 were on under 25 year-olds. Seven of these tests were positive.
Casualty Reduction Officer Barry Gardner said, “Drink driving sadly continues to be an issue on the roads of our area. These results show that you don’t have to be involved in a collision to be stopped and breath tested.
“These 43 drivers chanced getting behind the wheel of their car and drove under the influence of alcohol. They will now face the magistrate who will decide on the penalty. This could be a 12 month driving ban, a criminal record, a fine of up to £5,000 or up to six months in prison or both. These 43 drivers face far reaching impacts on their lives, they could lose their jobs, face the loss of independence as they will not be able to drive, face the shame of having a criminal record. When they get their license back they will face increase in car insurance costs and may be effected by travel restrictions to countries such as the USA.”
17 drivers were tested for driving while under the influence of drugs. Four of these proved positive and will again be dealt with in court.
