8:00am Wednesday 25th January 2012
By Josh Layton
EIGHT motorists are still on the road in Swindon despite having three convictions each for drink driving.
The offenders were able to legally renew their licences when their latest disqualification periods ended.
Another 74 drivers in the town are still behind the wheel despite having two convictions, while 1,606 have clocked up one offence.
Campaigners have responded to the figures by calling for more to be done to stop motorists who persistently get caught while over the limit.
Kevin Clinton, head of road safety for RoSPA, said: “This level of repeat drink-drive offending is extremely worrying.
“Any driver who is convicted of drink driving more than once in a 10-year period becomes a high-risk offender.
“They must pass a DVLA medical exam to show that they are no longer misusing alcohol before they can get their licence back at the end of their ban.
“The fact that eight drivers went on to have a third conviction for drink driving is even more worrying. All this illustrates the need for strong, high-profile enforcement to protect the vast majority of innocent, law-abiding people from this dangerous minority who persistently drink and drive.”
Ellie Pearson, spokeswoman for national charity Brake, said: “It is very worrying that so many drivers are knowingly taking such huge risks with their own lives and the lives of others.
“Even a small amount of alcohol impairs driving ability so drivers should never get behind the wheel after drinking even a drop of alcohol.
“We are calling on the government to send out the clear message that it’s ‘none for the road’ by introducing a zero tolerance drink drive limit, and to provide an effective deterrent for drink drivers by stepping up policing.”
Over Christmas the mangled wreck of a car was put on display in the town centre. A 22-year-old girl, who was over the drink-drive limit, died as a result of the accident in which the car hit a tree in Devizes at 50mph earlier in 2011.
Richard Palusinski, head of Swindon Community Safety Partnership, said: “One would hope that after disqualification drivers would have learnt their lesson.
“This hasn’t been evidenced by those who have further convictions and are now driving again.
“All I can say is there is no excuse whatsoever for driving while under the influence of drink or drugs.
“The message should be pretty straightforward.
“What’s not acceptable is putting other people at risk from a potentially lethal piece of metal while under the influence of alcohol.”
The figures for the Swindon postal area were released by the DVLA under the Freedom of Information Act.
The maximum penalty for driving while over the legal limit is six months’ imprisonment, up to a £5,000 fine and a ban from driving for at least one year. This rises to three years if a motorist is convicted twice in 10 years.
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