On August 8, multiple media outlets reported that Federal Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould was considering lowering the maximum legal blood alcohol content (BAC) for drivers from 80 milligrams (.08) to 50 milligrams (.05) per 100 millilitres of blood. The change was proposed in a May 23 letter to Quebec’s Justice Minister, Stephanie Valee, and has received mixed responses from various stakeholders, including road safety advocates, car accident lawyers, and law enforcement.
In the letter, Wilson-Raybould said the current BAC limit was based on outdated science, and that lowering the limit would “make it easier to fight the danger posed by drivers who have consumed alcohol.”
The current legal limit has been set for nearly 50 years and is based on research that found drivers with a BAC of .08 were twice as likely to be involved in accidents. However, the Globe and Mail reports that a 2002 US study showed a BAC of .08 made drivers aged 35-49 three-and-a-half times more likely to be involved in an accident than a sober driver.
Despite the fact that the drunk driving rate today is two-thirds lower than it was in 1986, “impaired driving remains a serious problem in Canada,” RCMP Staff Sgt. Kevin Baillie told the CBC in Prince Edward Island. Baillie is in favour of a lower limit, stating that “anything that would reduce the instances of impaired driving is a good measure to consider.” This sentiment is generally echoed by car accident lawyers.
Opposition
Critics of Wilson-Raybould’s plan were quick to voice a variety of concerns. Some, like Francois Meunier, a spokesperson for an association representing Quebec restaurateurs, believe it could hurt small businesses, especially in rural districts.
The issue is not necessarily lower alcohol sales, he told the National Post, “it’s about food sales that go with the alcohol. When it comes to celebrations, parties, all that will be done at home as people change their behaviour. It’s easy to talk about taking a taxi or public transportation, but in the regions it’s not as easy.”
While car accident lawyers may argue that reducing drunk driving fatalities should take precedence over small business revenues, other skeptics, like Hubert Sacy of Éduc’alcool, don’t believe a lower alcohol limit would significantly improve road safety without supplementary regulations.
“You don’t pull a rabbit out of a hat and just decide that this is the magic answer to everything,” he said to the CBC. “Everywhere where drunk driving has decreased it has been the result of a legislative change. There’s tons of measures that need to come before that.”
Sacy advocates for increased roadside checks and giving restaurants and bars the power to stop drunk patrons from driving.
The Canadian Automobile Association, meanwhile, expressed concern that lowering the legal limit at the same time as legalizing marijuana would put law enforcement and the justice system under unnecessary strain.
“If the BAC limit is reduced to 0.05 as well, we believe the governments would be biting off more than they can chew, and the pill for motorists would be too hard to swallow,” said CAA-Quebec director Marco Harrison in a release.
If you or a member of your family has suffered an injury in a traffic collision, contact the car accident lawyers at Neinstein Personal Injury Lawyers today for a free, no-obligation consultation. We can help you access the compensation you need to get your life back on track.