Many people drink and drive every day, oblivious to the consequences. Is it, however, a smart decision to drive intoxicated in order to get home safely or “get away with it”?
No, it doesn't work that way.
When you choose to drive yourself home while inebriated, you are endangering not just your own life but also the lives of anyone else on the road with you.
While 0.08 percent is the legal limit for driving in the United States, lower BAC levels can also impair your ability to drive, so the safest bet is to avoid driving at all if you've had anything to drink. Regardless matter how well you can handle alcohol, driving with alcohol in your system is dangerous.
Poor Judgment & Decision Making
Alcohol, as you may have heard, has a significant influence in clouding judgement. Alcohol can impair your judgement to the point that you make poor decisions that you would not make otherwise, which you will come to regret the next morning or after you sober up.
For example, if you are inebriated, you may opt to drive home much past the legal drinking limit, or when you are aware that you are inebriated and should not be driving. However, the forces of having your own bed, not wanting to wait or pay for a ride, and the old adage of being “only around the corner” override the prudent and safe decision, and you get behind the wheel.
Slowed Reaction Time & Lack of Coordination
When you have alcohol in your system, your body reacts to certain events more slowly. Because you won't be able to respond to something happening as soon as you would if you were sober, your reaction time will be decreased, increasing the chances of an accident. For example, if someone cuts you off or stops short in front of you, you may run into the rear of them instead of being able to think quickly, brake, and avoid an accident.
Similarly, you might not be able to respond quickly enough when you are doing drink driving if an animal or, worse, a pedestrian runs onto the road. When a person is under the influence of alcohol, their brain takes longer to comprehend and react to situations.
Decreased Vision
When driving, being able to see properly is crucial, and excessive alcohol use can lead to vision difficulties. Drinking might cause your eyesight to blur or your eyes to twitch uncontrollably. It's possible that you'll lose some control over your eye movement. Your ability to assess the distance between your car and other vehicles or objects on the road may be affected by this vision impairment.
Increased Likelihood of Having an Accident
While road fatalities have decreased in recent years, alcohol-related crashes still result in roughly 10,000 deaths in the United States each year. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, alcohol is involved in nearly one out of every three motor vehicle deaths in the United States.
Even though there are countless warnings, as well as increased education and public awareness about the hazards of drinking and driving, people continue to go behind the wheel of their cars while inebriated, despite the fact that the consequences for doing so are becoming more severe.
Potential Legal Ramifications of Drinking & Driving
As if the increased danger of death to yourself and others wasn't bad enough, anyone who decides to drink and drive also risks facing substantial legal consequences.
The officer will ask you to take field sobriety tests if you are pulled over on suspicion of drunk driving. If you fail these tests, which assess your motor skills and judgement, you may be requested to take a breathalyser test to determine your blood alcohol concentration (BAC). If you fail this test, you will be sent to the local jail for the night and charged with DUI or DWI.
Summary
Overall, the risks of drinking and driving significantly outweigh the benefit of hoping to arrive home safely. Even when sober, driving a car safely is challenging, but adding alcohol to the mix puts your life and the lives of others on the road at jeopardy. Make the correct decision and avoid driving when inebriated.
