We are well into December and the Festive Season (love it or hate it) is well and truly upon us. People are shopping in their droves as they hunt for that quintessential gift for their loved ones, or for the Secret Santa organised between friends or colleagues. As the dates of Christmas and New Year approach, parties are organised for workplaces and family gatherings also take place. Obviously, alcohol is consumed, and while it is fine to enjoy a drink or two in moderation with some festive cheer, people do tend to go overboard.
While alcohol can fuel fights and arguments, it is when people drink and drive that it becomes its most dangerous. Each and every year, the authorities embark on a campaign as Christmas approaches, urging people to not imbibe and then try and drive. The results can be devastating. Let us be completely frank here. Malta does have a problem with both over consumption of alcohol, as well as people thinking that they can drive when they are clearly intoxicated. It happens on a regular Saturday night, let alone around Christmas time. There are many alternatives to driving home drunk. Nowadays, cab firms are found aplenty, and their prices are reasonable, especially if the ride is shared between two or more people.
The same applies for car sharing. One person can be the designated driver and agree not to drink while out celebrating, and the roles can then be reversed on, for example, New Year’s Eve.
There are also night buses and if the worst comes to the worst, if people have imbibed too much, then they should simply give their keys to someone else and just take a regular cab home.
The authorities have again stated that they will be taking a zero tolerance towards drunk drivers and they can expect to be summoned to court. But the most important part of it all lies here. A car is a lethal weapon at the best of times, let alone when the motorist is not in full control of it. If a person’s reaction times are impaired by alcohol, they risk not only their own life, but also the lives of those who are in the car with them as well as the lives of other motorists or pedestrians.
The authorities went one further this year and warned people of the dangers of driving while hungover. The hospital staff know these as the 5am crashes. People might go out for a full on drinking session, grab a cab home and then only sleep for a couple of hours before having to go to work. A good portion of these people are involved in traffic accidents and the reason is still simple, they are still drunk the morning after.
The message could not be clearer. The dangers could not be more obvious. If you plan to drink, this Christmas, then do not drive, it could cost lives.