You could be arrested for using mouthwash or eating a hot-cross bun under South Africa’s driving changes
The Automobile Association of South Africa (AA) has heavily criticised the government’s plans to introduce a zero-tolerance stance on drunk driving.
The proposed change is included in the National Road Traffic Amendment Bill, which is currently being considered in parliament.
The amendments effectively change the legal blood alcohol content (BAC) limit for drivers from 0.05 grams per 100 millilitres to 0.00g/100ml, and the breath alcohol concentration from 0.24g/1,000ml also to zero.
In a presentation to parliament this week, the AA said the reduction of blood and breath alcohol levels to zero is unlikely to achieve substantial positive changes.
This is because many of the country’s problems with drunk driving relate to enforcement – and not the regulations themselves, it said.
It added that the new regulations do not account for ‘drunk walking’, and that pedestrians are the user group with most fatalities on South African roads.
“The level of enforcement of drink-driving laws has a direct effect on the incidence of drinking and driving. Increasing drivers’ perception of the risk of being detected is the most effective means of deterring drinking and driving,” the AA said, citing data from the World Health Organisation.
“Breath-testing devices that provide objective evidence of blood alcohol content are a very effective enforcement tool. The implementation of random breath testing and sobriety checkpoints for drivers has been seen to be effective.”
However, the association said that legislation without policing is ineffective.
Arrested for using mouthwash
The AA said that the proposals also fail to account for gut fermentation syndrome, also known as auto-brewery syndrome – a condition characterised by the fermentation of ingested carbohydrates in the gastrointestinal tract of the body, which could temporarily trigger a spike in an alcohol reading on a breathalyser.
This type of situation made headlines in 2019, when videos circulated showing a breathalyser reading showing an alcohol level of 0.21mg after after ingesting some hot cross buns.
While experts noted that another test taken a few minutes later would have recorded 0.00mg again, the worries over false positives under zero-tolerance laws are once again in spotlight.
The AA added that these concerns extend to a number of other consumables which could produce a false positive in tests.
“The proposals do not consider the use of medication or antiseptic products such as mouthwashes which contain alcohol, but which will not impair driving: these products may produce positive breath test results above zero for drivers who are not intoxicated or impaired
“They also do not consider use of alcohol in religious activities – such as sacramental wine, communion wine, altar wine – which will deliver positive results above zero, but which do not impair driver behaviour.”
The AA also expressed concerns with law enforcement’s ability to cope with the proposed changes.
“They do not consider that current traffic law enforcement, blood testing, and prosecution infrastructure are severely strained and struggling to cope. A decrease in alcohol levels (equates to) an increase in arrests and will add massive further strain to the system which has to process so much more with no real value.”
Existing problems need to be addressed
The AA said that legislation alone will not solve the problem of drunk driving in South Africa.
Instead, it said that the following flaws in the existing system should be addressed:
- Effective policing is needed
- There is currently no fear of motorists being caught;
- There are too few traffic law enforcers on South African roads;
- The capacity of traffic law enforcement value chain -including enforcement, samples, prosecutions – is strained;
- Technology must be better employed;
- There should be severe punitive measures for offenders – the Aarto legislation gives offenders too much leeway;
- Education and public awareness campaigns need to be ramped up and consistent to curb the anti-social behaviour of drunk driving.
“You cannot solve a problem with a problem, and that’s exactly what this legislation will do,” the AA said. “You cannot legislate yourself out of a problem that requires boots on the ground.”
Instead, the association said that education and public awareness campaigns are needed to root out the problem of drunk driving in the country.
Read: Concerns over new microdot and tracking rules for cars in South Africa
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