2023 Author: Eric Donovan | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-05-21 15:44
Words of warning are often pointless when young drivers want to get behind the wheel while drunk. Friends should better show that they are afraid for him and don't want him to put himself in danger. Even better: it is already clear who is driving and not drinking.
Trying to stop a drunk from driving is often not easy for friends. This is especially true after a party or a visit to the disco. "You are not allowed to drive" or "It is forbidden to drive a car while drunk" usually does not help in night-time conflict situations, explains Michaela Goecke, head of addiction prevention at the Federal Center for Health Education (BZgA). It would be better to express your fears with sentences like: “I care about you” and to convince the unreasonable driver with arguments like “I don't want you to put yourself in danger”.
Ridesharing as an alternative to taxis
So that no one is tempted to sit behind the wheel while drunk, a driver should be determined before the party night. «One of the clique agrees not to drink alcohol. Of course everyone has to get on with it,”says Goecke.
In larger cities, there is an alternative to “ride sharing for partiers”, which are cheaper than a taxi. Otherwise, teenagers often only have to ask their parents to pick them up.
Increased willingness to take risks from alcohol
"Young people are disproportionately involved in traffic accidents," says Goecke. They would have a greater willingness to take risks due to their alcohol consumption and misjudge distances. According to the road traffic regulations, a limit of 0 per thousand applies to novice drivers in the first two years of driving license or up to the age of 21 - so not even a small beer may be drunk.
If a young person does not adhere to it and ends up in a traffic control, he faces a heavy fine and his driver's license withdrawn. But even those who have survived the probationary period and get into the car drunk must face the consequences. Participation in road traffic can be punished under criminal law from as little as 0.3 per mille. (dpa / tmn)
