Launching the campaign 'If you drink alcohol, don't drive'

On February 12, the National Traffic Safety Committee launched a communication campaign called “Do not drive after drinking alcohol” and “Do not give your vehicle to unqualified people”.

The campaign aims to raise awareness among traffic participants in complying with traffic safety laws during the holiday season... At the same time, the campaign also aims to educate parents to strictly manage their children's use of vehicles, ensuring that they only hand over vehicles when their children meet the legal requirements and have sufficient knowledge and skills to safely operate the vehicle.

Speaking at the launching ceremony, Mr. Le Kim Thanh, Vice Chairman of the National Traffic Safety Committee, said that during the recent Lunar New Year, the number of alcohol violations remained high, occurring in many places with over 17,000 cases, accounting for 30% of the number of violations handled by authorities.

“Vietnamese law does not prohibit drinking alcohol, but the law prohibits drinking alcohol while driving,” Mr. Thanh said.

In addition, the act of handing over a vehicle to someone who does not have a driver's license or is not qualified to drive the vehicle also poses a great risk, increasing the risk of accidents, causing insecurity for the driver himself and those around him.

"This reality requires us to resolutely handle violations but also be persistent and step up propaganda to reduce these violations," Mr. Thanh emphasized.

The representative of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Vietnam added that even a small amount of alcohol can impair driving ability and lead to serious consequences.

“Not only are there strict penalties for those who violate alcohol concentration while driving, but we also understand that each traffic accident can leave behind painful losses, causing tragedy for individuals, families and the whole community,” the WHO representative emphasized.

According to statistics, motorbikes are still the main means of transportation for Vietnamese people. By the end of 2024, there will be about 77 million registered motorbikes nationwide, and 7 million cars.

However, the report of the National Traffic Safety Committee shows that 60-70% of traffic accidents involve motorbikes. Although not all of these accidents are caused by motorbikes, in many accidents the motorbike rider is the victim.

Because of the popularity of motorbikes and the trend of using motorbikes, along with the characteristics of transportation in Vietnam, Mr. Le Kim Thanh emphasized that implementing solutions to improve traffic safety for motorbikes is a very meaningful issue for millions of people using this vehicle every day and will certainly contribute to improving traffic safety in Vietnam.