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Hard drink, hard facts
Page 58
Page 59
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It comes as ro surprise our driving deteriorated in direct proportion to our alcohol consumption. By the third drive, both our testers reckoned the initial rush of alcohol had eased off and they felt much more in control of their driving. However, the results here paint a very different picture.
Driving behaviour was measured in a number of ways — iane stability, speed, distance to the vehicle in front and reaction time, as well as a visual record of the drivers' behaviour —and our boozed-up truckers showed every sign of being at the bottle.
Both drivers adopted a more upright position at the wheel as they took on more alcohol. According to the TRL team, this is consistent with other research into drink-driving: it could simply be a result of the driver trying to convince himself that he is still alert. A drunk driver is also more likely to exhibit ludic movements', such as rubbing his chin or putting a hand to his face or mouth.
A tendency to wander in the lane was another factor which got worse as the booze took its toll, but the effect wasn't consistent. One of our test drivers was consistently more wobbly in the lane, using the wheel more frequently to hold the line. The other driver (no names, no pack drill) was able to hold a straight line most of the time, but when he deviated from the lane the movement was greater whlch could have been a greater hazard in the real world.
Both drivers went faster with more alcohol, a tendency which DfT statistics indicate as the cause of many drinkdriving accidents. They also drove closer to the vehicle in front. Their reaction to the fog white-outs also deteriorated as the test progressed.
Meanwhile, our sober control driver showed the expected consistency throughout the test.
In fairness, neither of our testers was involved in simulator accidents during their drunken runs, though this was more by luck than judgement as both had some narrow escapes.