Drunk driving: what to do to avoid new massacres?

Everyone agrees on zero tolerance. But we also need more incisive communication campaigns, especially for young people. Just a glass of wine before getting behind the wheel and an eighteen-year-old driver can turn into a killer. Is it exaggerated? No. Because in Italy road accidents are the leading cause of death among young people. And it is no coincidence that the new Highway Code provides for "zero alcohol" for drivers up to 21 years of age. The numbers are also clear: 5.7% of motorists stopped by the traffic police in 2019 during the weekends tested positive for the alcohol test, and it was mainly boys between 18 and 25.

"At that age - says Emanuele Scafato, director of the National Alcohol Observatory of the Istituto Superiore di Sanità - there is a low perception of risk, and even an alcohol content of only 0.2 grams in a liter of blood can have devastating effects on the reaction skills of a very young man driving a car. For example, lateral vision is lost, and so the machine becomes a deadly weapon in the hands of a potential murderer, that is, one who is unable to control it. All the more if, while driving, he uses his cell phone, looks at the navigator, listens to ball music or even has even taken narcotic substances ».

In these conditions, the brain goes haywire. But a 33 cl bottle of beer or a glass of whiskey is also enough to significantly reduce the ability to understand reality. And so everything becomes a "virtual world". Driving is like playing the PlayStation. So what to do to avoid tragedies like those of Corso Francia, in Rome, or Lutago and Senigallia?

148 fatal accidents were detected in Italy by the polstrada in 2019, with 178 victims, mainly young people. How is it possible, therefore, a zero tolerance to alcohol consumption among millennials? Is it enough to intensify police checks on the streets and in front of discos? «A culture of safety is missing - says Scafato -, and it is not just a matter of respecting legality. It is necessary to put respect for life, for oneself and for others, first ». waterloo cab

Raising awareness in schools, involving teachers and families, a constant commitment from institutions. There is a need for high-impact communication campaigns. Like the one with the images of cancer patients on cigarette packs and the words "Smoking kills". Photos of road accidents caused by drunk driving, with crumpled cars and signs of tragedies prominently displayed on wine, beer and spirits containers. Why not?

"They must be punched in the stomach - says the president of the Italian Psychiatry Society (SIP), Enrico Canada -. To communicate with the children it is necessary to use the means and figures closest to them. To reach them it is crucial to focus on what they use and consume, and beer cans or wine bottles are certainly among their consumer goods ».

Another proposal comes from Canada: "If young people who caused accidents because of intoxication, and whom today pay for it, wanted to become the testimonials of a campaign to tell their peers what this experience meant to them, what it could be a strong deterrent for many ». And Scafato specifies: "But the campaigns must last at least ten years, otherwise they are of no use".

Yesterday evening, the Interior Ministry received the first response: the prefects were asked immediately to strengthen the presence and activity of the police on the roads, while the ministry will promote a coordination table in the coming weeks for an extraordinary information campaign aimed primarily at young people.