Are more women driving drunk?

The answer appears to be YES.

That’s the conclusion of a recently released report by the Traffic Injury Research Foundation.

The common typecast of the drunk driver was male – often a young man: “for several decades, road safety research has demonstrated the fatalities and injuries related to road crashes (due to alcohol or other unsafe driving behaviours) have predominately involved males.”

But the data tells another story revealing an encouraging trend: male drinking and driving is being radically reduced.

In the last three decades however, greater attention has been focused on female drunk-driving as police and legal authorities respond to a steep increase in the numbers of women at the wheel causing alcohol-impaired collisions.

Why?

Observers theorize that the “don’t drink and drive” message was subtly directed to men, but unpredictably only having its success with its targeted demographic.  Others have focused on the physiological differences between males and females, and the ability of each gender to process alcohol.  Still others project that as a group, women are displaying more cavalier social attitudes in general, and towards alcohol usage in particular.

The report goes on to indicate that women tend to develop substance abuse problems more quickly than men, and often when they are older – again contrary to the popular perception that drinking and driving is most persistent among younger people.

And women drunk drivers are generally more highly educated.

Although this study deals with US data, the Foundation believes anecdotal evidence supports similar trends existing in Canada.

If so, it would appear that the social stigma of driving while drunk needs to be challenged with some 21^st century gender equality.

Reference:  Traffic Injury Research Foundation (Ottawa Ontario) report date November 2011.

Tags: driving, drunk driving, insurance, Liability, risk, safety, women