December 19, 2003

Support for lower legal limits for drinking drivers

Four in five Canadians want to see the current blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for impaired driving law reduced. A vast majority of Canadians (83.5%) feel MADD Canada's suggested 0.05% BAC is either about right or not low enough.

In a recent SES national telephone survey, Canadians were asked whether they supported or opposed a movement 'to change the laws so that people will not be able to drink as much and legally drive.' A majority -- 62% of Canadians strongly supported lowering the BAC, while another 12% somewhat supported the action.

When asked whether they supported the MADD Canada suggestion of lowering the BAC to a specific limit that would allow a 200 lb man to drink 4 drinks in 2 hours, or a 140 lb woman to drink 2 drinks in 2 hours, 41% of those surveyed thought the MADD Canada limit was 'about right', while 42% of Canadians thought the limit should be lower. Only 6% of Canadians felt the limit should be higher than 0.05% BAC.

"A great majority of Canadians think the current legal limit allows a person to drink too much and that we need to lower it," says Andrew Murie, National Executive Director of MADD Canada. "Canadians want to feel safe when they drive their vehicles - and that they won't become a statistic of impaired driving. That is why a vast majority has concluded that the BAC in Canada must be lowered. Most of us understand this as an important public safety issue."

Mr. Murie explains, "Lower BACs mean there will be drivers drinking less - and that means increased safety for everyone on the road. And this is important for it will lead to a decrease in the number of Canadians being killed and injured as a result of alcohol-related crashes."

"The international experience and the empirical research point to a lowered BAC of 0.05%. The more Canadians are informed about just how much a person can legally drink and still get behind the wheel, the more they support a lowered legal BAC limit," he adds.

Mr. Murie cites another interesting finding from the survey, "Approximately seven of ten Canadians do not drink and drive. There is a strong support for lower BAC because there is a strong desire by those who drive responsibility to not become a fatality or injury statistic as a result of a drinking driver."

A Centre for Addiction and Mental Health study concludes that as much as 6% to 18%, or as high as 555 deaths a year would be avoided in Canada if the federal Criminal Code BAC were lowered to 0.05%.

MADD Canada reports that, in practical terms, the current legal limit means a 200 lb. man on an empty stomach can drink 6 plus, standard drinks in two hours and will likely not be charged with a Criminal Code offence for impaired driving. MADD Canada strongly believes this is not social drinking, but rather levels that are far too risky for other safe and sober road users.

This survey was conducted by SES between November 5 and 9, 2003, and is accurate within 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.

For more information, visit www.madd.ca, or call:

Andrew Murie, National Executive Director
1-800-665-6233, ext. 224

Supporting material:

Detailed Tables - MADD (Canada) National Poll – November 2003 (PDF)