Crackdown on drunk driving during World Cup

In a span of 11 days since the FIFA World Cup began, traffic police have dealt with more than 11,000 cases involving people driving under the influence of alcohol in the country, the traffic authority said on June 24.

There have been around 210 cases of drunken driving and more than 2,700 cases of drinking while driving on June 23 alone, when the country conducted the second nationwide action to control incidents triggered by heavy drinking, the Ministry of Transport said.

According to Chinese Criminal Law, drivers are considered drunk if they have 80 milligrams or more of alcohol for every 100 milliliters of blood. Drivers who test at more than 20 milligrams but less than 80 milligrams of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood are considered to be drinking and driving.

More than half (54 percent) of the drunken drivers were between the ages of 20 to 40, the ministry said, and most of the drunken driving incidents occurred before games (between 8-10 pm) and the six hours during games (midnight to 6 am).

The strict efforts to crack down on drunken driving have reportedly worked. Traffic incidents triggered by drunken drivers over the past 11 days have been reduced by 10.6 percent year-on-year, police said. Deaths from drunken driving incidents have also dropped by 10 percent.

The police will continue the monthlong campaign to control drunken driving during the World Cup by making regular examinations and conducting patrols at entertaining venues.