Law

Lesson 1: Positive change

Legal Reporters Group • DNUM_CDZAGZCACE 12:16

Thanks to good propaganda work, strict handling, and publicizing plans to inspect and handle violations of alcohol concentration on mass media, the number of violators in Nghe An province has recently tended to decrease. It is worth noting that from the belief that drinking habits are difficult to change, people who use alcohol have gradually formed new habits such as asking family members to pick them up, using taxis, driving services, etc.

Present at the alcohol concentration checkpoint on Nguyen Sy Sach Street on the evening of May 28, after dividing the lanes, the working group of the Traffic Police Team of Vinh City Police continuously stopped vehicles for inspection. According to the records, most drivers appeared comfortable and complied well with the inspection of the traffic police force.

Nghiem Anh Chau, a car driver in Le Loi Ward, Vinh City, said: Checking and strictly handling violations of alcohol concentration for drivers should be maintained regularly. In fact, if people who have drunk alcohol or beer drive, it is not only dangerous for themselves but also poses a potential traffic safety risk for other road users.

In many cases, when the traffic police stop the car for inspection, when the window is rolled down, it is not difficult to see that someone in the car has consumed alcohol or beer but is not driving, and the driver has not violated the law. While checking the driver of the car with the license plate 37K-225xx, the driver is a woman, this person said: After being administratively fined 7 million VND once, having her driver's license revoked for nearly 1 year, now every time I go out to eat or drink, mainly to socialize with relatives and close friends, my husband asks his wife to drive him, only calling a taxi when he is in a pinch. Now my husband and I have formed this habit".

After more than 2 hours starting at 8am, the working group only discovered 2 violations. Each violation had a reason to justify, such as having a death anniversary at home or meeting friends, forcing him to drink alcohol or beer. Mr. N.D.A, driving a motorbike with license plate 37B2-70xxx, had a breath alcohol concentration of 0.072 mg/liter of breath, explaining: "A long-time friend from abroad invited me to his house for dinner, so it was hard to refuse. I didn't drink much, only about 3 glasses of wine. When checked, my driver's license was suspended for 23 months and I had to pay a fine of 7 million VND. For me, this is too expensive...".

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I didn’t drink much, only about 3 glasses of wine. When I was checked, my driving license was suspended for 23 months and I was fined 7 million VND. For me, this is too expensive…”.

Mr. N.D.A - the motorcyclist violated alcohol concentration

In fact, not only in the city but also in the countryside and mountainous areas, since Decree 100 with its heavy penalties, the awareness of the majority of people has gradually changed, gradually forming the habit of "don't drive after drinking alcohol".

As a cultural officer in the remote district of Tuong Duong, Mr. Vi Hoang often goes to the grassroots to meet with the people in the villages. In the past, it was difficult to avoid being invited to drink alcohol each time, because in reality, in the concept of the people, only honored guests are invited to drink alcohol and of course, guests cannot refuse the host. However, since Decree 100 combined with Directive 17 of the Provincial Party Standing Committee stipulates that drinking alcohol and beer is not allowed during working hours, cadres who often have to go to the grassroots like him have less pressure about this.

Mr. Hoang said that currently, through the mass media, people in remote areas have a clear understanding of the main contents of Decree No. 100 on administrative sanctions related to traffic safety and alcohol concentration violations. “Only on business trips that last for many days and require overnight stays are people offered alcohol or beer. Because people know that if they drive after drinking alcohol or beer, even a little, they will be severely punished, so they do not dare to offer it…”, Mr. Hoang said.

Along with forming new habits, many people now know and use the service of driving after each time drinking alcohol or beer. That is a change in traffic awareness, ensuring safety for themselves, their families and society.

Having used the carpooling service several times, Mr. Vo Khanh in Vinh city feels very satisfied with this service. Mr. Khanh said that due to the nature of his job, he often has unexpected appointments or has to entertain guests. After drinking beer or wine, driving home is both dangerous and violates the Traffic Law, and leaving the car behind is also not safe, so since the carpooling service was introduced, I often use it and have not encountered any difficulties, the driver arrives very quickly. “My personal habit of drinking alcohol and driving has really changed, as has many people. Currently, there are many applications for us to find drivers to take both people and cars home safely,” said Mr. Khanh.

Mr. Duong Sy Dinh in Vinh city also said that after being introduced to the car-hailing app by a friend, he never drove himself home after drinking alcohol again. “Once, after I drove home from entertaining a client, I was called in by the traffic police for an alcohol test and fined up to 7 million VND, so since I learned about this service, I have used it regularly. The cost of each car-hailing service is 100,000 VND for a radius of less than 10 km, which I think is reasonable because the driver has to come with another person on a motorbike, and after driving for me, they have to go back. So I think that cost is reasonable, because if you are too drunk but still try to drive, not to mention being fined, if you accidentally collide, who knows what could happen,” said Mr. Dinh.

Through research, currently, in Vinh city, there are over 30 clubs and groups providing car driving services. This service was born as a practical solution for people who drive cars and have consumed beer and alcohol; users only need a few seconds to operate on the phone, after a short period of time, the driver is waiting at the shop, ready to drive the customer home.

Mr. Bui Quang Vinh - the founder of the Driver 76 group in Vinh city shared: The group was established at the end of March 2023, and now has nearly 20 members, aged 35 and over. The members mainly work in agencies and businesses, participating in the group as part of overtime work. These are all long-time drivers, with a lot of experience, able to drive many types of vehicles, with clear backgrounds, familiar with the roads in the area, do not use stimulants, alcohol, beer and alcoholic beverages...

Currently, information about the group is widely advertised on applications such as Zalo, Facebook and at many restaurants in Vinh city. The cost for each time using Driver 76's driving service is 100,000 VND/10 km radius from the starting point, over 10 km, an additional 13,000 VND/km, in case of going to the suburbs, it will be agreed with the customer in advance.

Many pub owners and restaurant managers have also partnered with driving services for people who have consumed alcohol. This not only ensures the safety of diners but also gives customers peace of mind when eating and drinking at the restaurant. As Mr. Tran Anh Tuan - owner of HP restaurant in Quan Bau ward (Vinh city) said, strict alcohol concentration checks, especially in the early days, directly affected the restaurant's revenue, at times dropping by 30-40%. However, now almost everything has come back to order.

Previously, the restaurant had to come up with a way to serve customers so that they could feel secure when coming to the restaurant, such as for customers who came to the restaurant by personal vehicle, when leaving if they had drunk alcohol or beer, they would directly ask the customer if they left their vehicle at the restaurant to ensure care, and at the same time, someone would take them home... These are tasks that the restaurant had to include in the expenses, however, in return, customers coming to the restaurant felt very secure, and accordingly, revenue returned to stability. Now, things are simpler, we have updated and linked to introduce to customers about 5 groups and associations about driving services and customers have responded very well.

Lieutenant Colonel Nguyen Nam Hong - Deputy Head of the Traffic Police Department of Nghe An Province Police said: After drinking alcohol, people proactively hire driving services, technology car services, which is a very conscious act for the safety of themselves and the community. Accordingly, service providers need to equip themselves with driving skills and behavior, driver qualifications, contributing to building a culture of safe traffic participation. On the part of people, it is also necessary to note that when calling for a driving service, they should call the hotline number to ensure transparency and responsibility, and should not wave down drivers along the road to avoid the risk of insecurity, loss of property, and even danger to life.

It can be seen that the promotion of propaganda in many forms and the consistent viewpoint of "no forbidden zones, no exceptions" in handling the behavior of drinking and driving has created timely effects on traffic safety. Accordingly, along with changing people's awareness, the diversity of types of car rental services has become the optimal solution, so that the fun is truly complete without affecting the safety of yourself and the community when participating in traffic.

(To be continued)