Statistics released last week by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration say 20 percent of people age 16 and older acknowledged that they've driven within two hours of drinking alcohol, and two-thirds of them said they've done it within the past 30 days.
At a glance, that's staggering.
The counter-argument, of course, is that just because someone had a beer or a glass of wine and then drove an hour and a half later doesn't mean he or she was above the legal limit of 0.08 percent blood-alcohol concentration or that he was a risk to others.
But the question has to be asked: If someone is willing to drive on a little alcohol consumption, what's a little? And what's a little more?
That's why it's important to look at what else the survey showed, and also to consider that people don't always honestly self-report, so the numbers could be even higher.
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On that note, 40 percent of drivers who drink within two hours of getting behind the wheel said they thought they could have three drinks in that period and still drive safely. Some in that 40 percent said they thought they could have more than three drinks within two hours of driving and still drive safely. Whether their blood-alcohol concentration is above the legal limit after that will often depend on a person's alcohol tolerance, size and gender, and what type of alcohol he's consumed.
Plus, the alcohol itself might make one a bit more confident than his sober self would be. Another factor: Eight percent of those surveyed (or, extrapolated to the driving population, about 17 million drivers) said they drove during the past year when they thought they were over the legal limit.
Another finding from the survey complicates that statistic. Of the people surveyed, 81 percent said they think drinking and driving is a "major threat to their personal safety and that of their families."
A question left unanswered: Why did those drivers still get behind the wheel after drinking when they think that very action is a big problem?
Note: The recently released survey was conducted in 2008. It sampled 6,999 people through land-line and mobile telephones. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said it conducts the survey periodically to identify public attitudes about drinking and driving.
Road Q
Question: "I am curious about the locations of the two radar vans. With many busy streets, intersections and neighborhoods to cover, the vans seem to focus with noticeable frequency on a small area - North Country Club (Road) between Allen and Prince (roads), or Allen between Country Club and Tucson Boulevard. I noticed this several months ago, and then I began to keep track as listed in the paper," Beverly Rutter wrote. "Why such a concentration in this small, obscure area?"
Answer: "We select our deployment locations mainly in response to complaints from the community, patrol officers or other city departments. We also deploy the van in areas where we see an increase in accidents that are related to speeding. Two of the most common complaints are speeding through neighborhoods and speeding through construction zones," said Lt. Lew Bentley, Tucson Police Department traffic section commander.
"The areas mentioned by the reader are areas where we have received numerous complaints and requests from the community and neighborhood associations. They complain of people speeding up and down the side streets and also through the school zones. This is just one of many locations that we deploy the radar vans in response to complaints from the community. We try to deploy at different times and different days to make sure we are thoroughly addressing the complaints," Bentley said.
Road Runner answers road-related questions in this column on Mondays. Send your questions by e-mail to roadrunner@azstarnet.com or to 4850 S. Park Ave., Tucson, AZ 85714. Please include your first and last names.
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