Kingsport Times News Editorial - May 25, 2007

Alcohol use can make holiday weekend deadly


Despite prices for gasoline that seem to be soaring past Saturn these days, many in our region will likely take to the road at some point over this Memorial Day holiday.

Tragically, however, some won’t reach their desired destination; still others will arrive, but won’t make it back home.

Why? Too much beer and booze with the holiday picnics and barbecues.

Alcohol remains the leading factor in motor-vehicle deaths, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. More than 17,000 people die in alcohol-related crashes in an average year, representing 41 percent of all those killed on the nation’s roadways.

In Tennessee, drunk drivers claim an even higher 43 percent of all fatal crashes. And because holiday time — those luxurious three-day weekends — means party time for so many people, this becomes an especially dangerous time of year.

When it comes to highway traffic deaths, the United States has been losing valuable ground compared with other countries. The United States was the safest car-driving nation in the mid-1970s. But no more.

America has slipped behind Canada, Australia, England, the Netherlands and many other countries.

There are a variety of causes for the deaths, but in the No. 1 spot is alcohol consumption.

All the padded dashes, airbags, seat belts and other safety features in the world can’t save a life if motorists continue to drink and drive.

The Memorial Day weekend, a jump-start to summer, is traditionally one of the deadliest times of the year on the nation’s highways, and impaired driving is a big part of the problem.

Before you set out for your holiday, consider that alcohol:

• Can slow reaction time by 10 percent to 30 percent.

• Reduces the ability to perform two or more tasks at the same time.

• Reduces the driver’s ability to see distant objects and can reduce night vision by 25 percent.

• Can cause blurred and double vision.
• May create a sense of overconfidence, with the result that people are prepared to take greater risks.

Aside from the deaths caused by drunken driving, the costs of alcohol-related crashes are estimated at $45 billion annually, victimizing literally millions of innocent, sober and law-abiding people who are injured or have their vehicles damaged. But all of the adverse effects of alcohol-related accidents and deaths can be prevented.

If, for whatever reason, you decide to drink this Memorial Day weekend, please don’t drive while under the influence. Call a cab, hitch a ride with a sober friend or family member. Don’t let this holiday end in an unnecessary t r a g e d y.