This article is from page 3 of the 2011-08-30 edition of The Clare People. OCR mistakes are to be expected so download the original SWF or the rendered page 3 JPG
DRUNK-DRIVING is more acceptable in Clare than in any other county in Ireland with more than half of all Clare drivers would “take the chance” of driving while possibly still drunk from the previous nights drinking according to a survey from the Automobile Association of Ireland.
According to the survey, which had 14,000 responses and is the largest survey of its kind ever undertaken in Ireland, 52.4 per cent of Clare drivers would drive while still a little drunk compared to 49.8 per cent in Cavan and 49.7 per cent in Limerick.
The survey also revealed that Clare people were the third most likely in Ireland to get into a car with someone who was possible drunk.
Ennis man and head of the Irish Drivers Association, John Lernihan, says that people need their head examined if they get into a car driven by someone who is over the alcohol limit.
“Would you go on a flight with a pilot who had drink taken? I know I wouldn’t. It is the same thing, you could be killed in the car just as easily as a pilot in a plane,” said John.
“Clare is a rural county and people don’t have the public transport which is available to them in Dublin or places like that but there is no excuse to drink and drive. If you are down in a place like Kilbaha, let’s say, and want to go into Kilkee, it just can’t be done with public transport.”
Mr Lernihan has blamed the governments policy of allowing drunk drivers to pay a fine and collect penalty points for putting a price on human lives.
“The idea is to make money. They are saying that it’s okay to chance killing someone by being drunk behind the wheel and people can get away with it by paying a fine. They are doing away with the court route – it’s about fines and penalty points now and that is all about making money for the government,” continued John.
“They are putting a value on people’s lives and I think that this is an insult to the people who have lost loved ones through drunken driving. They are now saying you can take a chance and drink and drive – and buy back your license after that. The Irish Drivers Association would be in favour of a mandatory ban – it is an insult to people and their right, especially those who have lost loved ones.”