Shock rise in number of young drink drivers

Fears raised over drink driving awareness as worrying trend appears more entrenched in 2017

YOUNG people aged between 21 and 30 accounted for the greatest number of drink driving offences in Kerry since January, alarming new figures released by gardaí reveal.

Gardaí expressed their deep concern over the trend, at a meeting of the Joint Policing Committee (JPC) held in Killarney on Friday, as it appears to be getting more entrenched in the county.

Young people were once considered the most attentive to the message on drink-driving, but the message now seems almost entirely lost on the age group. This was the second time since May that a JPC meeting was informed of the worrying rise in drink-driving among the young by Kerry gardaí.

Kerry Traffic Corps head, Inspector Tony Sugrue, said it was one of the biggest concerns for the force in the policing of road traffic.

“The big concern is if we look at the breakdown in the age you will see that three-quarters of detections relate to motorists under 50 years-of-age,” Inspector Sugrue informed the JPC on Friday.

“I think the perception was that it was the over 50s who were more likely to drink and drive, but it’s not, it’s under 50 and it’s dropping all the time,” he warned.

Nearly 30 per cent of all drink driving offences (58 of 199) detected in Kerry between the New Year and August 31 related to motorists aged between 21 and 30.

County councillors on the JPC welcomed an increase in garda checkpoints on the roads coming as part of a crackdown on road traffic offences.

THE age group 21 - 30 accounted for the single greatest demographic caught drink driving in Kerry between January and August 31 this year in a worrying indication that drink-driving campaigns are being ignored by young motorists.

This is the second time this year that garda figures have shown a marked increase in drink driving offences among young motorists - an age group previously considered the least likely to get behind the wheel of a car while under the influence of alcohol.

“The big concern is if we look at the breakdown in the age you will see that three-quarters of detections relate to motorists under 50 years of age,” Insp Tony Sugrue informed the Joint Policing Committee on Friday.

“I think the perception was that it was the over 50s who were more likely to drink and drive, but it’s not, it’s under 50 and it’s dropping all the time,” he warned.

The overall number of drink-driving cases remained comparatively stable over the past 18 months. 199 were detected across Kerry between January 1 and August 31 this year, representing a 4 per cent rise on the same period last year when 191 were detected.

And in a breakdown by age and sex of those caught driving under the influence of alcohol it is shown that 58 were between the age of 21 and 30; 11 were aged between 17 and 20; 49 aged between 31 and 40; 36 were caught in the 41 to 50 bracket; 30 in the 51 - 60 age group; 11 in the 61 to 70 age group and six drivers between the ages of 71 to 80 were detected driving under the influence of alcohol.

Men account for the vast majority (over 86 per cent) of offenders.

Meanwhile, drug driving soared by 100 per cent, from single to double figures. Five were detected last year, ten so far this year.

Some County Councillors welcomed the apparent ramping-up of drink-driving checkpoints in recent months.

Drink-driving, speeding and mobile phone use will all be targeted in ongoing operations, gardaí vowed. More checkpoints are being carried out this year - by the order of 37 per cent as gardaí clamp down on road traffic offences.

Insp Sugrue also presented an overview of traffic fatalities in the county, showing the risk was shared among all road users. Eight of the fatalities on Kerry roads over the last four years were drivers; six were passengers in cars; five were motorcyclists; eight were pedestrians and six were cyclists.

It was shown that 52.4 per cent of fatalities occur at weekends (a fifth of which occur between 4pm and 6pm); 64 per cent of all drivers in fatal incidents test positive for intoxicants, mostly alcohol.