Driving Under The Influence Of Alcohol - Heading To Serious Consequences

Driving under the influence of alcohol is one reason standing at the top of the traffic death list. The article below will show you more details about this.

Drinking and driving are quite common in the Philippines. However, driving under the influence of alcohol will lead the people's mood to excitement. At this time, drivers tend to have the illusion of being a real racer. Of course, the fact that they will drive fast as much as they want. It is also the main cause of catastrophic accidents. 

Driving under the influence of alcohol - the reason standing at the top of the traffic death list

Driving Under The Influence Of Alcohol - What is DUI?

Alcohol is a substance that impaired brain function and muscles. As alcohol levels increase in the body, so do the negative effects on the central nervous system. Alcohol is absorbed directly through the wall of the stomach and small intestine. Then, it enters the bloodstream, which is accumulated until metabolized in the liver. Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) is measured by the weight of alcohol in a given volume of blood. At a BAC level of 0.08 grams per deciliter (g / dL) in the blood, the risk of an accident increases exponentially. Therefore, this alcohol concentration is considered illegal in 50 states in the US. However, even small amounts of alcohol can affect your ability to drive. 

According to statistics of traffic police nationwide, motorcycles cause 70-90% of traffic accidents due to drinking. In which men cause 80-90% of traffic accidents to happen in the evening and higher on weekends.

Although the patrol, punishment, propaganda, and promotion of driving services to bring drinkers home have been intensified, the situation of driving after drinking alcohol is still popular, making traffic safety and order even happen complicatedly despite the current legal regulations.

About 40% of people who go out drinking and leave are drunk, of which 34% have a slightly wobbly gait, 5% of people are groggy. The rate of road traffic law violations among these people is very high; 36% do not turn on their turn signals when crossing the street, 26% goes in the opposite direction, and 17% do not turn on their lights.

Driving under influence of liquor will result in some issues such as:

Distraction

Although it stimulates a driver's excitement, alcohol also reduces their ability to concentrate. At this time, the mind is often not functioning properly. You drive with difficulty controlling the speed or walking in the right lane, then disobeying traffic rules. Depending on the degree of drunk, the drivers' ability to concentrate is affected; they can hardly focus on many details. The road's situation makes his ability to handle the situation limited, and lose the ability to judge. 

Vision reduction

Once you drink alcohol, the ingredients in this stimulant will affect your mind, making you decrease the capacity of observing. Everything gradually becomes fuzzy; the eyes are hard to focus on. As a result, it leads to hallucinations, sending wrong signals to your brain. The most obvious manifestation is that you cannot keep going straight, maintain the correct lane, leading to frequent reconnection or braking.

Slow reaction time

Drinking alcohol slows down your reflex time, so it increases the risk of an accident. For example, when a pedestrian suddenly needs to brake (brake) a vehicle urgently, it will take longer for your brain to decide.

Reduced coordination

When you drink a lot of alcohol, your eye, hand, and leg coordination skills are affected. Signs of this include being unsteady or unable to stand up straight

Driving Under The Influence Of Alcohol - Penalties In The Philippines

According to LTO fines and penalties in the Philippines for sanctioning administrative violations of road and railway traffic, you have to face with penalties:

- A fine of from 20,000.00 and 80,000.00 shall be imposed if the blood or breath contains alcohol but does not exceed 50 milligrams / 100 milliliters of blood or exceeds 0.25 milligrams / 1 liter of breathing air. Besides, you will be deprived of the right to use your driving license for 10 to 12 months.

- A fine of between 100,000.00 to 200,000.00 if the alcohol content in blood or breath exceeds 50 milligrams / 100 milliliters of blood or exceeds 0.25 milligrams up to 0.4 milligrams / 1 liter of breathing air. 

In the event of a traffic accident, the consideration of liability for damages and criminal liability will be based on the error factor.

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Republic Act 10586: Anti-drunk driving law in the Philippines

On the 27th of May, in 2013, The Act of Penalizing Persons Driving Under the Influence of Alcohol, Dangerous Drugs, and Other Similar Substances (The Republic Act 10586) takes effect prohibiting people who drink alcohol from operating in traffic.

There are 12 groups of prohibited acts, which forbid people from driving with alcohol in their blood or breath. Thus, the new regulation will completely ban and no longer provide for an alcohol concentration framework.

Such a fine is enough to discourage and prevent traffic violations because they hit hard on financial status. There are also regulations on criminal prosecution for a vehicle's driver when using alcohol and drugs, causing serious consequences.

The passage of these laws demonstrates Congress's determination to prohibit driving while using alcohol and other drugs. It is a general ban. Once you drink alcohol and drugs, no matter how much alcohol you drink, you cannot drive. Thus, if violating, people will be sanctioned at least administratively.

Final words

All these tragic accidents stem from the reason that the driver has been drinking alcohol before driving. Driving under the influence of alcohol is extremely dangerous, not only harming health but also having the potential to cause an accident, which can kill or leave life-long injury for yourself and others. 

>>> Vist Philhyundai Stories for more car tips & advice in the Philippines!