The subdelegate of the Government, in A Coruña, María Rivas, approached today to O Carballo, in the municipality of Oleiros, to supervise one of the alcohol controls that from today and until next August 20, the General Directorate of Traffic, will deploy in the four Galician provinces. The device is part of the Special Traffic Campaign, with the aim of reducing the consumption of alcohol and drugs at the wheel.
The deputy delegate was accompanied by the head of the Traffic subsector of A Coruña, the captain of the Civil Guard, Miguel Soldán
In this initiative, the DGT also encourages collaboration with municipalities to carry out tests in urban areas, with special emphasis on the areas with the greatest influx of tourists and popular festivals.
The subdelegate stressed that “in a third of fatal accidents, alcohol is present either as a causative or concurrent factor” and added that “its presence in driving, depending on its rate, multiplies between 2 and 15 the risk of suffering an accident”. “There is only one safe rate to prevent alcohol from affecting us driving is 0.0%,” he added.
Alcohol is not only related to a greater accident, but also has an impact on a greater mortality, being a factor linked to a worse prognosis in the injuries suffered.
According to the data of the National Institute of Toxicology referred to last year at the national level, of the 854 drivers who died in a traffic accident and underwent autopsy and toxicological analysis, 443 were positive in alcohol, drugs and psychodrugs, alone or in combination.
Alcohol remains the substance most consumed by deceased drivers, followed by cocaine and cannabis, and thirdly, psychoactive drugs.
The subdelegate stressed the importance of “always and in all cases, without exceptions, avoid drinking alcohol if we are going to take the car.” She insisted that “if we are going to get behind the wheel, there is only one viable option, not drinking alcohol.”
Once again, María Rivas stressed the need to take every precaution on dates that record the highest volume of road trips of the whole year. So far this year, a total of 15 fatal accidents were recorded on the roads of the province, with 15 victims dead, six less than in the same period of time of 2022.
Results of last year's campaign in Galicia
In the same special campaign carried out last year between August 8 and 14, the Civil Guard carried out 41,519 blood alcohol checks in Galicia, of which 641 were positive. It also carried out 224 drug checks, with 151 positives. In addition, 34 drivers were instructed in their subsequent transfer to the judicial authority for offences against road safety.
In the province of A Coruña there were 16,600 drivers who underwent a control of which 224 gave a positive result.