Road accidents involving alcohol are routinely monitored in Great Britain. Statistical information for recent years is summarised in this paper, the data having been drawn from reported motoring offences involving alcohol, police records of screening breath tests following injury accidents, and from special returns of blood alcohol concentrations from fatalities. Background information on the requirements for breath, blood or urine alcohol tests are outlined, together with returns for the period of the implementation in 1983 of the 1981 legislation. Distributions of blood alcohol levels in fatalities by age, season, time of day, and region for the period are given, together with data for single and multi-vehicle accidents. The materials presented update earlier published papers; information for subsequent years will be produced in a series of TRRL leaflets.
Abstract