A new road law has been confirmed to be put in place come June 2020. This will change the legal blood-alcohol limit to 0%. Now just one drink will count as drunk driving.
Currently, the legal limit for a driver to be on the roads is less than 0.05 grams per 100 milliliters of blood or 0.24 milligrams in 1,000 milliliters of breath.
“We are going to be intolerant to drinking and driving. We’re going beyond saying there’s some percentage – it must be zero percent. It’s going to be zero. No alcohol in the blood – and the law is going to bite with regard to that,” Mbalula said.
Mbalula has also said that there was overwhelming support for this new legislation. This could be in response to the shocking arrest statistics in 2019. A third of all arrests during the last festive season was for drunk driving.
What will happen if you are caught?
The South African Police Service (SAPS) will arrest with the charge of ‘Driving Under the Influence of Liquor’ to anyone above 0%. This could lead to a R2000 fine, two years in prison, or both.
Along with all other new road laws, this law will also apply demerits come June 2020. A varying amount of demerits can be applied depending on the severity of your offense. When these demerits add up to 12, you will face license suspension or have your license permanently taken away from you.
We urge all drivers to be safe while on the road and to have plans for getting home if you intend to drink.