Alcohol Breath Tests Expected To Be Half Pre-Pandemic Levels
The number of alcohol breath tests carried out at Garda checkpoints this year is expected to be half that of pre-pandemic levels, while the Roads Policing Unit is at its lowest staffing level since 2017.
In response to a parliamentary question from Green Party TD Patrick Costello, it's been revealed that 88,734 alcohol tests have been carried out at checkpoints by Gardaí.
It means that they're on course to carry out just over 150,000 before the end of the year.
Now, it is worth noting that these figures don't seem to include breath tests carried out when Gardaí intercept drivers and it's also worth saying that Gardaí can carry out drug tests faster thanks to their new drug wipes.
With that being said, the number of breath tests carried out at checkpoints in 2018, was almost 315,000 - more than double of this year's projection.
Shane O'Donoghue, Editor of CompleteCar.ie says it's shocking, but not surprising:
"While speeding clearly does contribute to a lot of theses crashes. It isn't the only thing happening.
I said for a long time Garda enforcement is severely lacking, and it's really interesting to see the figures now."
It comes as we've had another tragic weekend on the roads, with five lives lost since Friday.
