A CRACKDOWN on summer drink-driving has begun this week as part of a campaign to hammer home the message that it is not just a problem at Christmas
Hampshire Police and Hampshire County Council's road safety team is backing the national "Think: Don't drink and drive - ever" campaign with a series of radio advertisements aimed at three specific groups - families and young people on holiday; clubbers and party-goers and families enjoying the summer mix of barbecues and alcohol.
The radio advertisements will be broadcast on Wave 105 for three weeks, starting this week, complimenting the Department of Transport's national campaign during the same period.
As well as aiming to educate motorists, police officers will be backing up the campaign by clamping down on the problem with random checks and breathalising all motorists involved in collisions.
Campaigners have this week said that summer drinking and driving is a problem, as a quick drink after work can frequently escalate to two or three - not only putting the driver at risk, but also other road users and pedestrians.
The county council's executive member for environment Keith Estlin said: "It's now widely recognised that drinking and driving is dangerous, but there are still those who think it's ok to have a couple of drinks before driving home. It's not.
"The only safe drink to have if you're getting behind the wheel is a non-alcoholic one.
"It really isn't worth risking your safety, your driving licence, and other people's lives just for the sake of a few glasses of wine or bottles of beer.
"We're working with Hampshire Constabulary to really get the message across that drinking and driving is totally unacceptable at any time of the year."
Sergeant Kory Thorne, casualty reduction manager for Hampshire Constabulary, told The Herald that over the summer months officers see a small increase in instances of drink-driving - usually linked to major events.
He explained: "Last year, for instance, we had an increase in drink driving while the World Cup was on because people were often in the pub.
"We will have to wait and see what effect the hot summer weather will have on this year's figures."