DRINK DRIVING: Over 13% of Greeks who have fun at the weekend exceed the permissible alcohol limit

Drinking alcohol before driving is one of the leading causes of road fatalities and serious injuries, with incidents rising significantly after a weekend night out, particularly among young people. At least 4,000 deaths could be avoided in the European Union annually if drink-driving were eliminated, according to a recent report by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC).

For this reason, an action was recently carried out which takes place every year under the name "European Night Without Accidents" by the Road Safety Institute (I.O.A.S.) "Panos Mylonas", at the same time as corresponding actions in European countries, to be informed, but also to record useful data.

This year's "European Night Without Accidents" took place in a total of thirty-five entertainment venues nationwide, while 700 volunteers participated who were outside the selected entertainment venues urging the patrons, who arrived to enjoy the evening, to choose the person who will undertake to be the "Guide of the Group".

The action saw 2,000 people take up the challenge and wear the green wristbands, with more than 1,650 of them (82.5%) returning to take the friendly breathalyser test before ending their fun.

Of those who participated in the breathalyser, 59% were men and 41% women, with an average age of 35.5 years. 13.7% was found above the permissible alcohol limit with the corresponding percentage in 2022 being 11% and in 2021 12%.

Of these, 65% were men, while 35% were women.

A hopeful message was that an extremely large percentage of the participants, 42%, were recorded with a zero breathalyser (56% men - 44% women), while correspondingly last year the measurements with a zero breathalyzer were at slightly better levels, reaching 49.5%.

85.5% of the group's drivers were below the legal limit of 0.25 mg/l (and respectively 0.10 for professionals, young drivers and bicyclists) and were rewarded with beautiful souvenirs.

The largest consumptions were recorded in the large urban centers (Attica, Thessaloniki, Patras, etc.) where some measurements of particularly alarming limits were recorded. 77% of those who recorded the highest consumption were men with an average age of 36.

"Our volunteers and the agencies that rally alongside us give us incredible strength to continue with the team. The difficult work we are doing to establish a culture of road safety in our country," said the president of I.O.A.S., Vasiliki Danelli-Mylonas.

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