In this study, the results of blood alcohol tests obtained from Coroners in England and Wales and Procurators Fiscal in Scotland for the five year period 1995-99 have been analysed to examine the extent to which alcohol plays a part in pedestrian fatalities. Records linking blood alcohol concentrations (BAC) to accident details obtained from the national road accident database (STATS19) were available for 1748 (42% of 4153 total cases) adult pedestrian fatalities (those aged 16 and over who died within 12 hours of a road accident) during this five-year period. This is a summary of the principal findings from this study relating to age and sex and these are compared with those from an earlier study in 1985-89 (Everest, 1992). Since that earlier study the overall number of fatally injured adult pedestrians has reduced by about one half, but the proportion that had consumed any alcohol (defined to be BAC in excess of 9 mg/100ml) has increased from 40% to 48%. The figure for those pedestrians found to have a BAC in excess of the drink-drive limit (80mg/100ml) in 1989 was 31%; by 1999 this had increased to 39%. (Author/publisher)
Abstract