Zero alchohol limit for young drivers considered

The Government is considering introducing a zero alcohol limit for young drivers, Minister for Transport said today.

Under the system - which is used in Sweden, Australia and a number of other countries - young drivers on new or provisional licences would serve a probationary period of several years during which they would not be permitted to drive after consuming alcohol.

The current permitted alcohol level for drivers in Ireland is 0.8mg/ml, which equates to around one unit of alcohol.

The Minister said he believed nobody should drive after taking an alcohol

Speaking after a meeting in Dublin of 50 transport ministers from Europe and elsewhere, Martin Cullen said he believed nobody, whatever their level of driving experience, should drive after taking any alcohol, no matter how little.

"I am strongly of the view in the world we live in today just don't drink and drive, that's the lesson to be learnt," he said.

A zero-tolerance approach would teach young drivers an important lesson, he said. Once they passed the probationary period, it was hoped they would opt to never drink and drive. "If you get into good habits, you keep them," he said.

The young drivers' initiative was still at the discussion stage, Mr Cullen said. He has asked the Road Safety Authority to look into the feasibility of introducing it in Ireland, along with a graduated licence system.

These measures will not be contained in the Road Traffic Bill, which the Minister promised would be enacted before the Dáil's summer recess.

The bill contains provisions for the introduction of random breath testing, banning the use of hand-hled mobile phones while driving and the privatisation of speed cameras.

A survey by the European Transport Safety Council (ETSC) last week rated Ireland 13th out of the 25 European Union member states in terms of road safety enforcement. Ireland's enforcement of drink driving laws was highly criticised. The report recommended that Ireland's allowable blood alcohol limit be no higher that 0.5 mg/ml.

The conference of  traffic ministers heard that traffic crashes are the biggest cause of death among 18-24 year-olds across Europe. Up to 30 per cent of fatal accidents involve a young driver and young men have three or more times as many fatal accidents as young women.