OBJECTIVE: Driving after drinking is one of the main causes associated with road accidents in China. China has been concerning about this serious problem and updated the regulations of road traffic safety law about driving after drinking for 3 times in the last 10 years to deter the offensive driving behavior. The deterrence effect of the current punishment measures implemented from January 2013 was studied in this paper.
METHODS: Data applied in the study was collected by questionnaire surveys carried out in Chongqing, a city in southwest China. A total of 329 drivers participated in three rounds of the survey and 5-point scale rating was applied in the investigation.
RESULTS: There is slight difference between the drivers' familiarity of the law items about driving after drinking in April 2013 and April 2014. The perceived certainty of being caught for driving after drinking is higher in April 2013 than that in April 2014 and it has a time-dependent decreasing tendency. Our investigations also show that the license suspension is the most practical and effective measure and penalty points system ranks the second. Monetary fine appears to be inefficient to achieve the desired effects.
CONCLUSIONS: The 4(th) edition of Chinese Traffic Safety Law which took effect on January 2013 coinciding with application of random breath testing and intensification of enforcement activity is effective in deterring driving after drinking according to the investigation. More measures should be implemented to change the decreasing tendency of perceived certainty of being caught for driving after drinking. The amount of monetary fine is suggested be raised up to a threshold.