From the '90s to now - culture of alcohol still drives crisis on our roads

DRINKING and driving has been one of South Africa's most persistent and deadly public health and safety challenges. While we have made some legislative strides over the past three decades, the cultural acceptance of alcohol - and its devastating impact on road safety - continues to claim thousand's of lives each year.

- RHYS EVANS

In the 1990s, it wasn't uncommon to see people enjoying drinks over lunch and then get behind the wheel with little concern. Today, we have stricter drink-driving laws, better knowledge of alcohol's effects, and more vehicles on the road, yet fatal alcohol-related crashes remain alarmingly high. South Africa still has one of the highest rates of road fatalities in the world.

So, what's changed, and what hasn't? The answer lies in the complex relationship between social norms, economic pressures, mental health struggles, and enforcement failures. To understand where we're going, we need to look back and acknowledge how far we still have to go.

Shifting culture of alcohol use

In the 1990s, alcohol was widely accepted in public and professional life. Drinking during the day was considered normal, even at business meetings, and few questioned the health risks or safety implications. The legal Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) limit for drivers was 0.35mg per litre, significantly higher than today's thresholds.

Since then, regulations have become stricter. Today, the BAC limit is 0.24 mg/l for general drivers and just 0.10mg/l for professional drivers such as taxi, bus, and truck drivers, which means more than one or two 30ml beers at 5% alcohol or one to two glasses of wine at 120ml in an hour can put general drivers over the limit, while even a single drink might be too much for professional drivers.