China cracks down on drunk divers

[Guest Tony n Terrific]

China has proposed expanding a nationwide campaign against drunk drivers to include penalties against their passengers.

The plan follows a two-month crackdown on drunk driving that included road blocks, heftier fines, 15-day jail terms and six-month license suspensions.

Drivers in Beijing can be cited as drunk if they have a blood alcohol level at or above 0.02, or 20 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood. That is much lower than the U.S. limit of .08, making virtually any consumption of alcohol by drivers illegal. Beer is inexpensive and popular in China, while spirits tend to be consumed at official functions.

 

 

 

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091012/ap_on_...drunk_driving_1

[GDBILL]

China has proposed expanding a nationwide campaign against drunk drivers to include penalties against their passengers.

The plan follows a two-month crackdown on drunk driving that included road blocks, heftier fines, 15-day jail terms and six-month license suspensions.

Drivers in Beijing can be cited as drunk if they have a blood alcohol level at or above 0.02, or 20 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood. That is much lower than the U.S. limit of .08, making virtually any consumption of alcohol by drivers illegal. Beer is inexpensive and popular in China, while spirits tend to be consumed at official functions.

 

 

 

 

http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20091012/ap_on_...drunk_driving_1

 

This is good news! In the papers lately they have been reporting this and this new enforcement mechanism is quite popular with a lot of people.

 

I tend to think that this is not just another passing fad and that DWI will remain something they take seriously. It might take a while because they tend to take very, very gradual steps, but eventually I'm hoping that DWI enforcement gets as serious here as it is in other countries.

 

One thing that would be nice is if there were the concept here of motorized patrols actually pulling offenders over. YOu almost never see that -- at least in the larger cities.