JustMe Posted December 11, 2006 Report Share Posted December 11, 2006 Darkstar111 wroteI can imagine the problem is either lack of bus service, or the people out in the sticks that want to go out at christmas and enjoy themselves, have to drive... I am sure that they could get someone to give them a lift or get a taxi or something.... Sadly not that simple........every so often the Shetland Times reports on someone in court for driving over the drink limit who gave up trying to find a taxi to get them home so took the car instead. Maybe we should also be looking at the hours pubs and clubs are open and making those hours shorter or perhaps longer. Certainly it is a very long time since I would have gone out intending to drink and then to drive home........some time in the 60s.......but there have been times since then when I have thought that I had not drunk much and that I would be ok to drive. Maybe I was as it never got put to the test. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trout Posted December 11, 2006 Report Share Posted December 11, 2006 Yeah, it's a bit of a screwup in Shetland as the place is so geographically displaced and there are only 'so' many taxis! I'm not advocating people drink driving, but as you say there JustMe, I can see into these peoples drunken minds and see their thinking that taking the car "wid be da aesiest ting!". Might be an easy thing ... it certainly isn't the option to take though! I was all up for outright - no alcohol, no driving - until I thought about the morning after issue ala Marvins post. This is a problem! I personally have got up in the morning and though "crikey, am I actually okay!". How would you really know? You can still drive fine .. but imagine if you did get stopped? Hmmm?!?! As an aside, I know personally people that have passed the bag when they shouldn't have! It's a funny old thing the human body! A different set of circumstances and they'd have been brought before the dock! Sweden is a place that I admire for their safe driving policies - and also lack of digital copyright sprootle, but thats another post. It's a cultural mindset they have that drinking and driving isn't the done thing (as is speeding!! lord you have to drittle around at 40Mph on most of their roads 8O - it's like trying to drive to Eshaness on a Sunday!!). How do we go about instilling that into our children though? This is a problem that is generational in it's solution, not something to be fixed "overnight"! (note: all the threads on Shetlink re: drinking to excess) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMouth Posted December 11, 2006 Report Share Posted December 11, 2006 Yeah, it's a bit of a screwup in Shetland as the place is so geographically displaced and there are only 'so' many taxis! I have the solution. Come around to my place. There are taxi drivers turning up and leaning on their horns at all times of the night and day. I started to wonder if taxi drivers actually have legs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Man Posted December 11, 2006 Report Share Posted December 11, 2006 As someone who once upon a day worked for the companies that make the polis intoximeters (now there's a boring job!) i can tell you they have computers in them that recognies "mouth alcohjol" etc, and if you have been drinking cough medicine or chewing gm or gargling mouthwassh itll recogcnise them too. VERY clever things (cleverer than the sausage that was makiuing them!) and they even have one up here now, or so a "hard doen by" neighbour tells me. It is niot just teh one s that drink and drive that get my goat, its the ones that drink and drive and say to their equally tanked up mates, "Jump in, i'll gie yo a lift". The boozed up driver always seems to be the one who walkss away intact from teh reusltant smash, or takes the whole carload with them. Soemthing i feel strongly about too, and glad that others do. I have stood in frotn of folks cars and told them that if they drove, i was calling the polis. I did i once or twice when forced to, too. An empty thtreat is no use to man nor beast. And i was willin to take the fallout after. Hell mend them, they brin it on themsleves. In a place the size of shetland are you seriously going to tell me if they get boozxed up away from home, they dont know any mates they can stay over with? I'm no a shetlander (or a drinker) and yet i know folk who would put me up (or up with me) all over the islands! NOT an excuse, sorry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 As the festive season is upon us again, the police will not doubt start their anti-drink driving checks again soon and the Shetland Times is probably already making space for all the conviction reports. This has already started in the town I've noticed! Friday night after being up north doing some bits and pieces and visiting the family, me a a friend (the friend was driving) made our way back into town, did a quick run along the esplande to see if there was any scandal going... when we realised there was a police car behind us, it followed us off the pier and along to the legion where we turned to go home, pulled in at my house and so did the police car!! They got out and my friend got out to speak to them, I followed shortly after I was getting my bag and stuff out the car... they said they had stopped us as part of the Christmas drink-driving crack down... they asked my friend where we'd been and he told them, they then said 'ok that's fine, we'll let you get on... bye' and they left, and we were both left slightly stunned. I thought in the crack-down they breathalysed people etc. my friend hadn't been drinking but, I still thought they may have asked more questions? (I know if they had asked more I'd probably be ranting about them over questioning innocent people who hadn't done anything ) Has anyone else been stopped? were you over questioned or not questioned at all? Do the police have a quota to fulfill of drivers to stop? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Twerto Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I would presume that the police would have a pretty good judgement of if your friend had been drinking or not.. smell of breath, erratic driving.. parking skewed.. staggering towards them once he got out of the car and such stuff.. Had you friend failed on any of the above I'm sure the questioning would of been prolonged and maybe even taken into the back of the police car. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fjool Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I think Twerto is correct. The police could obviously tell that neither of you were the worse for a drink, so was little point in wasting any further time for any of you. Now if you had become belligerant and difficult to their questioning, looked worried or tried to flee, the outcome might have been different! I'd be surprised if they had a quota. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angel Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I was drunk though (damn white wine).... I was just curious if others had been stopped for such questioning, do they just pick cars at random to check? I reckon they just liked my friends car and wanted a better look Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BigMouth Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I'd be surprised if they had a quota. They don't. It's just a competition. See how many you can grab before Malcolmson's run out of doughnuts Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penfold Posted December 13, 2006 Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 I heard on the radio today that pubs in Liverpool city centre were going to ban any driver convicted of drink driving this festive from all the pubs in their pubwatch scheme for three months. Wonder if it will prove much of a success? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sudden Stop Posted December 13, 2006 Author Report Share Posted December 13, 2006 It'd be easier to enforce here than in Liverpool since there are fewer places to go, however it would still be difficult to do. Link that to pictures of the offenders in the paper and the combination of people getting recognised and the sheer embarassment might be something to think about. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Muppet Posted December 14, 2006 Report Share Posted December 14, 2006 I heard on the radio today that pubs in Liverpool city centre were going to ban any driver convicted of drink driving this festive from all the pubs in their pubwatch scheme for three months. Wonder if it will prove much of a success? How do they enforce that? You dont get served unless you can produce a current driving licence, so only the drivers get to drink! Seems a tad counter-productive to me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penfold Posted December 14, 2006 Report Share Posted December 14, 2006 No muppet what they stated was that once they were convicted the photo and the individuals name that the police take at the custody suite when the individual is booked and charged, is circulated to all the pubs that are in the pubwatch scheme and they take it from there. If the person tries to enter the premises they are asked to leave, and the pub notifies the rest of the pubs/clubs in the pubwatch scheme to be on the look out for the person. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pooks Posted December 15, 2006 Report Share Posted December 15, 2006 Seems to me that there is one serious flaw to this plan. Any pub that doesn't participate in the Pubwatch Scheme will make a mint out of the folk that can't drink anywhere else. It can only work if every pub is part of the scheme. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollydodo Posted December 19, 2006 Report Share Posted December 19, 2006 Drivers on prescription drugs can be as dangerous on the road as those with alcohol in their system. OK, they are warned of the dangers of driving with these drugs in their system, but not of the legal consequences. Why are all things not equal then? And what about the dangers or speeding. I admit to being a fairly fast driver, but there are those who overtake me and several other cars, hence risking lives of not only the driver, but of others on the road. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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