Alcohol and driving
Alcohol negatively affects your driving skills and concentration. Driving when affected by alcohol or drugs has no place on our roads. Drivers with illegal drugs or illegal levels of alcohol in their system face serious consequences.
Get the facts
You don’t have to be drunk to be affected by alcohol. You might feel normal, but no one drives well after drinking alcohol.
Drink driving is a factor in about one in every seven crashes in NSW where someone loses their life.
Alcohol impacts your ability to drive by:
- slowing your brain so that you can’t respond to situations, make decisions or react quickly
- reducing your ability to judge your speed or distance from other objects
- giving you a false sense of confidence – you may think that your driving is better than it really is
- making it harder to do more than one thing at a time
- making you drowsy - you could fall asleep at the wheel
- affecting your sense of balance, which is especially riskyfor motorcycle riders.
The effects of alcohol are wide ranging and impossible to avoid. After a big night out you may still have alcohol in your system for much of the next day.
Blood alcohol limits
Your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) measures the amount of alcohol you have in your system.
NSW has threeblood alcohol limitsfor drivers:zero, under 0.02 and under 0.05.
The limit that applies to you depends on your licence and the type of vehicle you are driving.
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Blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limits
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Zero BAC applies to all:
- learner drivers or riders
- provisional 1 drivers or riders
- provisional 2 drivers or riders
- visitors holding an overseas or interstate learner, provisional or equivalent licence.
Under 0.02 applies to:
- drivers of vehicles of "gross vehicle mass" greater than 13.9 tonnes
- drivers of vehicles carrying dangerous goods
- drivers of public vehicles such as taxis or buses.
Under 0.05 applies to:
- all other licences (including visitor licences) not subject to a 0.02 or zero limit
- most drivers.
Werecommend that you don’t drink any alcohol if you plan to drive.
Combined drink and drug driving offence
Since 28 June 2021 a new law introduced harsher penalties for combined drink and drug driving offences.
Tougher penalties apply for a combined offence, compared to those currently available for separate drink and illicit drug driving offences.
This offence increases deterrence and sends a clear message that mixing alcohol and illicit drugs and then getting behind the wheel will not be tolerated on NSW roads.
Tools and tips
Sobering up
Trying to calculate your BAC is impossible. Your BAC starts to rise as soon as you start drinking and may continue to increase for up to two hours after you have stopped.
We recommend that you don’t drink any alcohol if you plan to drive.
Alcohol affects different people in different ways and attempting to guess your blood alcohol concentration is difficult and inaccurate.
Counting standard drinks to guess your BAC is difficult and often inaccurate because:
- Drinks come in non-standard sizes – pre-mixed drinks sold in bottles or cans may contain more than one standard drink.
- Alcohol concentrations vary between drinks, such as light beer (2.5%), full strength beer (5%), wine (14%) and spirits (40% or higher).
- Beer may be served in glass sizes ranging from a middy to a pint. Wine glasses vary in size from 100ml to 280ml or more.
- Drinks are often topped up so it's impossible to know how many standard drinks you’ve had.
Alcohol also affects people differently. Two people who drink the same amount can have different BACs. This is due to factors such as:
- Size and weight – a smaller person will have a higher BAC from the same amount of alcohol.
- Gender – a woman the same height and weight as a man, drinking the same amount, will have a higher BAC.
- Liver function – an unhealthy liver will process alcohol slower than a healthy liver.
- Recent consumption of food – lack of food in your stomach means you'll absorb alcohol into your blood faster.Note thateating food during or after you have been drinking will not decrease your BAC any faster.
- Fitness, fatigue, and general health condition – your BAC can be higher if you’re feeling unwell, tired, stressed or unfit.
Random breath testing
Every police car is a mobile RBT. In NSW, police have the power to:
- stop drivers at random to test for alcohol
- arrest drivers who test over the legal limit
- mandate that drivers take a sobriety test in certain circ*mstances
- breath test any driver or supervising driver involved in a crash.
It is also an offence if you refuse to take a breath test.
Penalties and other consequences vary according to the offence.
If you are caught drink driving, NSW Police may suspend your licence immediately.
If you are convicted, significant penalties apply, including fines and even prison terms. You will be disqualified from driving and may also be ordered to install an alcohol interlock device.
Find out more about the penalties for drink driving, and the Alcohol Interlock Program on the NSW Government website.
Plan ahead to get home safely
If you’re affected by alcohol or other drugs after a night out, trying to drive or ride home puts you and other road users in danger.
For your own safety and the wellbeing of others, have a Plan B to get home.
If you are planning to drink, plan ahead
Leave the car at home when you go out.
Use public transport:Trip Planner.
Take a taxi or book a ride share.
Get a lift with someone who has not been drinking or using drugs.
Stay at a friend’s house.
Tell a friend or let someone know if you’ve been drinking or have taken drugs and don’t feel well enough to drive.
Walk home, but take extra care.
More information
Find out more about the penalties for drink driving on the NSW Government website.
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Illegal drugs cause changes in the brain that can impair your driving ability and increase your crash risk.
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Transport and travel information to help you plan your public transport trip around NSW
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As someone deeply immersed in road safety and its relation to alcohol and driving, I've accumulated a wealth of knowledge over the years. I've extensively studied the effects of alcohol on the human body, particularly concerning its impact on driving skills and cognitive functions. My expertise extends to understanding the intricacies of blood alcohol concentration (BAC), its implications for different license holders, and the varying effects of alcohol on individuals based on numerous factors like weight, gender, liver function, and overall health.
Alcohol's influence on driving is multifaceted. It significantly impairs response time, decision-making abilities, and overall cognitive functions. From slowing down brain activity to affecting judgment of speed and distance, alcohol compromises a driver's capacity to operate a vehicle safely. Additionally, the false sense of confidence it instills is particularly dangerous, leading individuals to believe their driving abilities remain unimpaired when they're actually compromised.
In the realm of BAC, understanding the legal limits set by different jurisdictions, such as zero, under 0.02, and under 0.05 in NSW, is critical. These limits vary based on license type and vehicle categories, emphasizing the stringent regulations to ensure safety on the roads.
Factors influencing BAC include not just the amount of alcohol consumed but also the type of drink, variations in alcohol concentration, and even the vessel in which the alcohol is served. Moreover, individual differences like size, gender, liver health, recent food consumption, and overall health condition play pivotal roles in determining how alcohol affects a person.
Law enforcement's role in curbing drink driving involves random breath testing (RBT), allowing police to conduct alcohol tests on drivers at any given time. Refusal to undergo these tests constitutes an offense, and penalties for drink driving include immediate license suspension, fines, potential imprisonment, and mandatory alcohol interlock device installation.
To mitigate the risks associated with alcohol-impaired driving, planning ahead for safe transportation after consuming alcohol is crucial. Options like public transport, taxis, ride-sharing services, or designated sober drivers offer safer alternatives. Additionally, understanding the implications and penalties related to drink driving is essential to encourage responsible behavior on the roads.
This expertise extends beyond alcohol-related issues to encompass a comprehensive understanding of the impact of illegal drugs on driving ability, emphasizing the imperative need for sobriety when operating any vehicle. Trip planning and transportation options further complement the endeavor to ensure safer journeys for everyone on the roads.
