In 2023, a motorist was apprehended on seven separate occasions by the police, having been suspected of operating a vehicle whilst under the influence of alcohol. The youngest male detainee was a mere 13 years old and the oldest was 90, according to a report from the Medical Bureau of Road Safety. This same report revealed that the greatest concentration of alcohol present in a driver’s blood was a staggering 439mg/100ml, nearly nine times greater than the lawful limit of 50mg per 100ml.
Professor Denis Cusack, director of the aforementioned Bureau, stressed in his preface to the report that legislation, prosecution, and medical rehabilitation need to focus more on mitigating the dangers posed by habitual and high-risk drunken drivers. The data in the report disclose that two drivers were apprehended on five occasions for supposed impairment, six drivers four times, and 22 drivers thrice within a single year.
Furthermore, the report noted a considerable rate of repeat offences with 243 repeat arrests in 2023. Every specimen gathered by the police is submitted to the Medical Bureau of Road Safety for assessment. In 2023, the quantity of blood and urine samples tested for alcohol remained high at 5,464, albeit a 3 per cent dip from the previous year.
On the other hand, the total number of toxicological samples analysed in that year climbed to 3,873, marking an increase of 80 from 2022. Breath test statistics decreased slightly, with 3,734 conducted – 87 less than the preceding year. As per Prof Cusack, alcohol continued to be the most common substance detected in drivers.
Regrettably, the statistics have remained relatively unchanged over the last decade, indicating that driving under the influence of alcohol remains a substantial risk on roads across Ireland. A significant number of drivers are surpassing legal limit levels for various driver categories, including particularly for defined drivers who have even more stringent restrictions.
Furthermore, apart from alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, and benzodiazepines were identified as the top three substances found in drivers in 2023. Prof Cusack noted that the mean levels of cannabis, cocaine, and benzoylecgonine discovered in positive cases were far beyond legal standards. This elevated presence of these substances in drug-impaired drivers has become a considerable cause of road accidents, mirroring the dangerous impact of alcohol.
Additionally, the persistent detection of combinations of drugs and alcohol remains a tremendous worry. In the year 2023, 86 per cent of all blood and urine samples provided to the bureau were from males. Of these males, 80 per cent were below 45 years of age, and the most substantial age group, at 31 per cent, was those aged between 25 and 34.
Surprisingly, about 57 per cent of blood and urine samples showed no alcohol traces in 2023.
Lastly, Prof Cusack mentioned that the ratification of several alcohol ignition interlock devices will be finalised within the year. This technology, once installed in a vehicle, hinders the ignition if alcohol is detected in the driver’s system. Some bus and lorry fleets in the country have already voluntarily implemented this system.