Belgium Stuns With A Record-Breaking Drink Driving Campaign

Belgium Stuns With

A Record-Breaking

Drink Driving Campaign

images0.persgroep PHOTO: POLITIE.BE15 SEP - Another record number of drivers checked for alcohol was broken by Belgium's Federal and Local police forces.

The authorities checked close to 360,000 drivers during the summer BOB campaign results of which were recently published. This represents a new increase in the number of tests carried out (322,000 tests in 2022).

Action

From Friday June 2 to Monday August 28, 2023, the Integrated Police carried out blood alcohol checks across the country as part of the VIAS BOB summer campaign. In total, 358,434 drivers were tested for alcohol: 2.24% tested positive, a slight decrease compared to last year. Over 12 weeks, the Local Police and the Federal Highway Police have checked an average of 4,073 drivers per day. Of the 358,434 drivers tested, 8,025 tested positive, or 2.24%. This is a slight decrease compared to last year (2.5% of positive drivers). In total, 2,870 drivers had their driving licenses revoked.

Koen RicourAnalysis

Koen Ricour, director of the Federal Highway Police (Federal Administrative Police): “As a historic partner of the BOB campaign, the Integrated Police were once again present en masse this summer to ensure the safety of road users. The reduction in the number of positive drivers is good news in itself. However, this percentage is still too high. Road safety is a top priority and the police will continue to carry out alcohol checks."

Achievement

For more than 25 years, the BOB campaign, launched by VIAS in 1995, has been raising citizens' awareness on drink driving. One of the fundamental principles of these campaigns is to always combine awareness-raising and police checks throughout the country. The results show that the campaign is achieving its objective. Most of the population has understood the message of the BOB campaigns and is adapting their behavior. A small minority, however, continues to ignore this message. These drivers represent a danger, not only to themselves, but also to other road users, say the organizers.