Drunk driving busts drop 24 percent

In the last four years, police officers have arrested almost a quarter fewer people driving under the influence. According to the Algemeen Dagblad, 46,000 drunk drivers were fined in 2010. Since then, that number has gone down to around 35,000. This is mainly down to special enforcement teams active in tracking drunk drivers since 1999, according to Traffic investigator Sjoerd Houwing of SWOV, the Scientific Investigations Bureau for Traffic Safety. In The Netherlands, the BOB campaign was also successful. The campaign raises awareness of the dangers of drunk driving. Drivers regularly see BOB signs next to roads urging them to call their designated drivers to arrive home safely. Since the campaign's launch in The Netherlands in 2006, there have also been stricter rules for unexperienced drivers and the alcohol ignition lock ('alcoholslot') ruling has also helped. The AD writes that another reason for the decrease in drunk driving arrests could be social media. As controls are announced on social media, drivers could choose to take another route. The economic crisis could also mean that people go out less.