POLICE STOPPED A mother who was caught drink-driving on the school run after a lunch with friends, it emerged today.

The PSNI’s Assistant Chief Constable Alan Todd recounted the incident to the Belfast Telegraph as one of a number of examples of how random breath checks have benefitted the force in Northern Ireland.

ACC Todd said that so far, there are more male than female drivers being caught drink driving, and they might be aged anything from 16 to 80.

He said there was a case this year “of a mother going out for lunch with the girls and going to pick up the kids from school and getting stopped and they are over the limit”.

Police in the north launched their annual winter drink-drive operation on 24 November. From midnight that night they were able to use new legislation which gives them the powers to perform random breath tests at vehicle checkpoints.

Assistant Chief Constable Alan Todd explained in November:

Our basic message remains the same; there is no safe limit, so never EVER drink and drive. This new legislation gives police another tool that will hopefully help us to prevent people taking life-threatening, unacceptable, simply stupid risks.

He explained that “previously, police officers needed a reasonable suspicion about the manner of someone’s driving, have seen a moving traffic offence, or been called to a collision before requiring a preliminary breath test from a driver”.

The new legislation means we can now establish vehicle checkpoints solely for the purpose of carrying out random breath tests, something which we hope will act as an even more visible, physical deterrent.

During last year’s operation, the PSNI detected 375 people who drink-drove.

“Considering that in some instances, we have stopped drivers who were so drunk, they could barely stand when they got out of their vehicle, just beggars belief,” said Todd.

In the weeks leading up to the festive season, the PSNI were again coordinating road safety operations in border counties with colleagues from An Garda Síochána traffic corp.

Meanwhile, gardaí said that over 500 motorists have been arrested since the start of this year’s anti-drink driving campaign on 1 December in the Republic of Ireland.

This figure is an increase of over a third on the number for this time last year.

An RSA report published this year shows that alcohol was a factor in 38% of all fatal crashes between 2008 and 2012, accounting for the deaths of 286 people.

Gardaí will maintain their increased presence on the roads until 8 January.

Drink-driving figures

The PSNI released its preliminary winter drive-drive figures on 21 December. The number of drivers and motorcyclists detected drink driving during the first three weeks of this year’s winter anti-drink drive campaign was up very slightly by 1.7%, compared to the same time last year.

• 241 drink drivers were detected between 24 November and 18 December
• That’s 4 more than during the same period last year
• This figure includes motorists who were unfit to drive, or who were unable or refused to give a sample.

To date, the PSNI has authorised 667 checkpoints, specifically to identify drink drivers.

In the first week of the operation, there was a 45% increase in detections (74 compared with 51 for the previous year).

“Thankfully it would appear that many people are heeding our warnings as there has been a noticeable decline in the second and third weeks, despite the increase in preliminary tests being carried out,” said Chief Inspector Diane Pennington this week.

But she cautioned: “However it is difficult to accept these figures as a success. We shouldn’t be detecting anyone drink driving.”

To date this year 66 people have lost their lives in crashes on the roads in Northern Ireland.

Read: Gardaí arrest 500 motorists for drink driving in just three weeks – and 40 in two days>