Community in plans to rescue village pub
JUST one glass of wine or pint of beer after five hours sleep the night before turns people into a danger on the roads, scientists warn.
Drinking a moderate amount of booze within the legal limit after a shortened kip leads to drowsiness behind the wheel and increased inattention.
The double whammy is worse than either being tired from a lack of shut eye, or a small amount of booze, alone.
And the combined effect lasts for hours, with the worst impairment occurring not at peak alcohol levels, but up to 60 minutes later.
The researchers said the findings are worrying as about one in five adults get less than six hours sleep a night.
They warned people who had little sleep and have a tipple should wait at least two-and-a-half hours before doing any driving.
Dr Clare Anderson, of Monash University, Victoria, Australia, said: “Many individuals may make a decision to drive based on the amount of alcohol consumed and the time since consumption.
“Our data suggest this represents an unperceived risk following inadequate sleep, since performance impairment remains many hours after alcohol was consumed.”
It follows a study last year that showed sleeping less than five hours a night and then getting behind the wheel is as dangerous as driving while drunk.
Another US team found drivers who miss between one and two hours of the recommended seven hours a night nearly double their risk of having an accident.
And motorists who miss two to three hours of sleep more than quadruple their risk of having a crash, which is the same risk as driving while over the legal limit. A GWYNEDD community is coming together in a bid to re-open its pub - with hopes villagers will invest money to start a “new dawn” for the area.
The village of Talysarn in Dyffryn Nantlle - that once had more than 30 shops - lost its final remaining business last year when the Half Way Inn closed its doors.
It left a massive hole in village life, taking away a crucial social meeting place for people in the area.
Now there are hopes the community can band together to invest in the village’s future by buying and re-opening the pub.
They want to turn it into a “village hub” with a cafe/shop and meeting place for village groups in the day and a pub in the evenings.
Chris Jones, of the steering committee working to buy the pub, said: “Our vision is to rebuild this business as a new style of ‘not for profit’ organisation, a commu- nity family friendly hub for all ages.
“Any profit gained over the financial year can be reinvested into the local community to help regenerate the area as a whole. Our main source of revenue to buy the property will be through selling community shares, so this will be an unique opportunity for the local people to invest in the community and to be involved in what hopefully will be a new dawn for the village.”
He added: “Hopefully we’ll be able to build good relationships with all the other local businesses in the area, new and old, and together we can promote what is a beautiful part of Wales.
“We’re aiming to promote and sell as much local produce as possible and cater for all types of visitors to the area such as divers, cyclists and ramblers who visit the area in great numbers.
“We feel that this is our last opportunity to save and adapt an important business in our village to suit modern needs and to rejuvenate the whole community before our history and heritage is lost forever.”
They have successfully applied for and gained support from The Plunkett Foundation, who specialize in backing community ventures.
The group will provide specialist advice on all aspects of creating a community enterprise such as developing an action plan and finding funding streams. ● A public meeting will be held in the village hall on August 3 at 7.30pm to let the community know what the vision and ideas are and for people in the village to share their own ideas. The steering group can also be contacted by email at cymdeithasnant2017@gmail.com.