Friday 27 January 2012
Festival goers are urged to take advantage of the free courtesy road side breath testing stations set up by Tamworth Regional Council this weekend.
The two free services, set up on the Northern and Southern exits of the city, will provide motorists with a reliable way to see whether they are safe to drive home.
From 9am to 6pm on Sunday, drivers can test themselves at the Driver Reviver site on Armidale Road.
There will also be a station operating this Sunday only from 7am to noon on the Sydney road, opposite the Big Golden Guitar.
Council’s Road Safety Officer, Paul Hobson said he has been surprised at the number of people who don’t realise their blood alcohol levels can still be over the limit the morning after a big night out on the town.
'At the Sydney Road site alone in previous years, around 200 breath tests were recorded over a six hour period. Of those, 15 per cent of participants were found to be over the legal limit’, he said.
He commented that many people were shocked to find out they still had alcohol in their systems.
'We find that people know about the risks of drinking driving the night of the event, but forget that they still could be over the limit the following day’, said Mr Hobson.
'Before starting the journey back home, everyone should consider if they’re right to drive and time is the only remedy to remove alcohol from the body.’
Mr Hobson also warns provisional license holders to be extra vigilant in monitoring their alcohol consumption with the introduction of zero alcohol limits.
Oxley Local Area Command police will be conducting random breath testing in and around Tamworth this weekend.
'Please be aware, if you decide to drive out to use the breath testing service - you run the risk of being booked if you still have an illegal amount of alcohol in your system’, Mr Hobson emphasised. 'If there is any doubt, the best option is to wait.’.