Shock tactics to halt drink-drivers

A SHOCK campaign is forcing home the horrors drink-driving can cause.

Oldham shoppers received a shocking wake-up call when wounded people in blood-soaked clothing surrounded a crashed vehicle in the town centre.

Thankfully, they were merely actors showing the horrific consequences of an accident as part of Drivesafe’s Christmas anti drink-drive campaign.

The hard-hitting shock tactics from the Greater Manchester road safety partnership feature in the roadshow that’s touring towns across the region.

Accompanying the wreckage are the Drivesafe team and outreach car, challenging passers-by to pour what they believe to be a single unit of alcohol.

The focus of this year’s campaign is the importance of not guessing the measures of alcohol you pour and the dangers of driving the morning after drinking heavily.

Drivesafe communications officer Karen Delaney said: “We wanted to go for something really hard-hitting this year to hammer home the message that drinking and driving just isn’t worth the risk. During the festive season people tend to take uncharacteristic risks with drink that can have life-changing consequences.

“Drivers should be especially wary of driving the day after the office party or a heavy night on the town.

“It’s a much safer option to take public transport or get a taxi to work.

“Some drivers are also still influenced by the ‘oh I’ll just have one’ mentality, without realising that even one pint of specialist beer could easily put them over the limit.”

Supporting the campaign is Greater Manchester’s only multi-operator/multi-mode public travelcard provider System One Travelcards.

It has donated 1,000 System One Saver scratchcards and one Annual County Card, worth £850, to the campaign, in the hope that shoppers and workers across Greater Manchester will choose to use public transport during the party season instead of taking their cars.

Failsworth Auto Spares is also backing the campaign as they transport the crashed vehicle from location to location.