THE number of motorists drink driving in the county remains the same as last year despite campaigns to stop it.
Gloucestershire Police carried out over 500 breath tests on drivers during their annual summer drink drive campaign and arrested 52 people.
The percentage of people who failed the test, eight per cent, was the same as last year.
Inspector of the Road Safety and Traffic Management department, Jason Keates, said: “It is encouraging that the number of drivers breaking the law hasn’t increased. However, it is disappointing that we haven’t seen a reduction and that there are still people who insist on risking their lives and the lives of others by drinking and driving.
“We would like to reassure the community that our work doesn’t end when the campaign does and we will continue to be vigilant in bringing offenders to justice and keeping the county’s roads safe.”
The Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership, which includes Gloucestershire Police, launched its summer campaign on June 1 to appeal to drivers to make proper plans for getting home safely if they had been out socialising, particularly after watching the football in pubs and clubs.
The campaign ran until the beginning of July and during the month officers around the county carried out breath tests on a total of 540 drivers.
Of those tested 43 either gave a positive test or refused to give a breath specimen.
The drivers arrested will now be processed through the courts and those proven to have been drink driving will have a minimum 12 month driving ban imposed on them. They will also receive a criminal record and could receive up to six months in prison and a fine of up to £5,000.
Andre Bovington, skills for life manager at Gloucestershire Road Safety Partnership added: “We want people to understand that drinking affects your judgement, and if you drink and then drive you are at a greater risk of causing a collision and seriously hurting someone. It’s as simple as that.”

With the recession still showing no signs of budging, everyone is making cuts and saving their pennies.

UK drivers bought one billion fewer litres of fuel at the start of this year in comparison to the start of 2008 pre-recession.

With fuel prices soaring making it impossible for some motorists to stay on the road, everyone else is attempting to reduce their costs and purchase as little fuel as possible.

The treasury is thought to have missed out on more than £630m in tax revenue.

However, environmentalists may see this particular change as a positive one, with more people walking or using public transport it is better for the environment but, families are affected in so many areas of their lives.

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Driving with points on your licence, whilst the DVLA have records of all fixed penalty endorsements they have no responsibility on court imposed sentences.

The BBC requested information under the freedom of information act and found that there are 322 people with 12 or more points on their licence who have not been banned from driving. The most shocking findings were one driver who has 21 points on their licence and another with 23.

This seems like an unfair system, anybody who exceeds 12 points should be given tougher penalties as they are repeat offenders.

The charity Road Peace were shocked at the findings and called for courts to do more. Road safety is paramount and those that abuse the system should be punished.

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A FINGERPRINT is all you need to determine whether someone is under the influence of drugs.
Paul Yates from Intelligent Fingerprinting, a company spun out from the University of East Anglia in Norwich, and colleagues, have developed a handheld device that police can use to detect breakdown products from drugs excreted through sweat pores in the fingertips.
The device applies gold nanoparticles coated with antibodies to a fingerprint. The antibodies stick to antigens on specific metabolites in the fingerprint. Fluorescent dyes attached to the antibodies will highlight the presence of any metabolites. The technique was first used to detect nicotine, but now works on a range of drugs, including cocaine, methadone and cannabis.
It is hard to prove that someone is drug driving, for example, says Yates, because existing tests are invasive, can be contaminated, or aren’t sensitive enough. The new device could detect nanograms of metabolites in minutes, he says. The device was announced at the UCL International Crime Science Conference in London last week.

As the summer holidays are upon us, parents need to watch the pennies and make them stretch even further.

Many families will be holidaying in the UK and using their car, so how can drivers save money whilst driving.

Firstly watch your speed, fuel consumption increases dramatically with speed. Give yourself plenty of time to reach your destination and factor in breaks if necessary.
Check your tyre pressure, underinflated tyres are extremely dangerous and will also increase fuel consumption.

Reduce your weight, we don’t mean you need to go on a diet but roof racks or overloaded boots will increase fuel consumption by around 25%. Consider what you are taking with you, is there anything you can leave behind.

It’s not just about reducing fuel consumption but in order to reduce severe headaches, our advice is to avoid travelling at peak times and weekends if possible, traffic jams will increase the amount of fuel used but also irritate drivers and passengers alike, especially the excited kids in the back of the car.

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Actor Michael Caine may have a role in the new Cars 2 movie but said he didn’t pass his driving test until he was 50.
The Italian Job star, now 78, admitted that he never got round to learning to drive as a youngster.
He said to UK newspaper Daily Record: “I grew up in a non-car period, the Second World War, when there weren’t a lot of them about.
“And I grew up in London, which had an incredible public transport system – taxis, buses and the underground – so I never knew a person who owned a car until I was about 25.”
However when he finally made it to Hollywood he realised he would need a car to get around.
He said: “You have to drive in Los Angeles, so I took a test there. It was weird. Before I took the test, the man said the guy who would be doing the test was sitting outside in the car and that I would only speak to him to say good morning.
“There would be no normal conversation – he would give me instructions, I would listen to him and that was that. There would be no personal remarks whatsoever.
“I got in the car and the guy looked at me and went: ‘I loved you in The Man Who Would Be King. You’re going to have to be s**t to not pass this test.’ So, at the age of 50, I passed.”

Linford Christie, Olympic gold medalist has been disqualified from driving for 15 months and ordered to pay £5000 in fines after he crashed into another car whilst driving the wrong way down a main road.

Christie, 51 was driving his Audi A8 late at night when he crashed into a taxi carrying newlyweds.

Christie accepts it is his fault, but was only found guilty of careless driving, not dangerous driving after his defense claimed he was experiencing difficulties in his personal life having just split from his partner of 26 years.

The jury’s verdict was that he had a lapse of concentration however, should receive a ban like any other driver would.

This driving ban will affect Christie and his attempt to coach athletes for next year’s Olympics, our advice; get your running shoes on Christie.

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Mrs Duke, 41 was guiding her 17 year old daughter into a parking space, when she lost control and revered her Ford KA into her mother.

It is thought Mrs Duke was teaching her daughter to drive and was practising in the car park where she worked in Rochester.

She suffered such serious head injuries she died two days later in a London hospital.

Mrs Duke was very well known by residents, who are shocked at the incident and they say she will be sadly missed; she was always such a cheerful and pleasant person.

No arrests were made, and the family are working closely with a family liaison officer. The young girl was hysterical at the scene and is now being comforted by family.

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A woman from Cornwall has been given an 18 month driving ban, ordered to pay £500 and complete 18 hours of unpaid work when she was found guilty of killing a woman due to careless driving.

Ms Couch, aged 20 crashed her car into Ms Allen just 16 who was riding her moped in January 2010. Ms Allen died at the scene.

The prosecution told the court that Ms Couch has received numerous text messages just before the accident took place however, there was no evidence to suggest she had used the phone whilst driving.

Blame lay with the fact that she was driving at excessive speed and the car was not in the best condition before the accident occurred.

The media have been pushing drivers to ‘Think Bike Think Biker’. Campaigners are addressing the dangers of those who ride a bike (whether it be a push bike, motorcycle or moped). They have often used graphic images and direct headlines to remind car drivers to consider those more vulnerable road users. The key three points to remember are:

Check for bikes when changing lanes

Check for bikes when turning

Remember Motorcyclist might pass you on either side

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A quarter of young drivers have lied to their insurer to lower the cost of their car insurance, according to a report by myvouchercodes.co.uk. Alarmingly, 68% of those questioned were not aware lying to their insurers could make their policies invalid.

Over half of the 17–21 year old respondents admitted to ‘fronting’ in order to save money on their premiums. This is when a young driver names one of their parents as the main driver of the car when in reality the parent does little driving.In addition, some 39% said they do not declare modifications made to their car and 41% lied about keeping their car in a garage.

Car insurance premiums for young people are extortionate because they are perceived as a higher risk. Young male drivers, often labelled as ‘boy racers’, are particularly badly hit.

The average cost of an insurance policy for a Renault Clio for a 17-year-old female is £2,911.01 per year whereas the average for a 17-year-old male is £5,232.56, according to the AA.
As a result of this many are using illegal practices to get around the expensive prices.Mark Pearson, chairman of MyVoucherCodes.co.uk, says: “I would never recommend lying to an insurer to lower your premium, because it invalidates the policy and should you need to make a claim, you may find that you can’t.”It’s a shame that people do this sort of thing to save money, because there are much better and more honest ways of getting money off.”