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Car Accidents: 10 Ways To Get Home Safe After Drinking
After a drinking spree, or indulgence in recreational drugs, trying to drive or ride home will put you and other road users in danger.
Alcohol and other drugs slow your reflexes, reduce coordination and increase risk-taking behaviour, etc. Each of these makes a car-crash more likely.
Thursday, Friday and Saturday nights account for more than one third of fatal drink driving car accidents. And they usually happen between the hours of 9 pm and 3 am.
Within that social period, the chances of an alcohol-related auto crash are much higher than any other time of the week.
So, how does one prevent an auto-mishap after indulging in alcohol?
Autojosh.com highlights 10 ways that one get home safe and avoid alcohol-related car accidents.
1. Plan ahead
Before heading out for a drinking session, make plans ahead, on how you intend to come back home. Think of safe alternatives to you driving home. Then opt for any of them.
Take a public transport to the venue of the happy hour. Leaving your car behind is a guarantee that you will not be in a car-crash. Well, that is except you did not opt for an equally inebriated driver to take you home.
3. Get A Ride-Share App (Uber, Taxify, Oga Taxi, etc)
Use a ride-share app to request for a ride to the venue and back. Apart from the convenience, this is a safer option to driving home yourself. Requesting for a ride on any of these platforms minimizes the risk of being taken advantage of, cheated on the fare, or even getting robbed by the driver.
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4. Walk home
If your home is within a walkable distance, then walk home. One benefit of this is that, walking tends to help wear out the alcohol in your system. However, be wary of some risk that comes with a drunk pedestrian.
Walking home with a friend or two is also a great idea. Besides, it is a way to get some exercise and possibly sober up a little to reduce the next day headache.
5. Wear a Reflective or bright-coloured clothe
If you intend to walk back home, wear a bright-coloured cloth or keep a reflective gear in your bag just in case. This is to minimize getting knocked down by a car that wasn’t able to pick you out on time in the dark.
6. Avoid crossing major expressways
Never cross a major expressway, especially the ones that are unsafe or illegal to do so. If there is a pedestrian bridge around you, use it. Take extra caution on roads with a speed limit higher than 30 mph.
7. Leave Your car behind at the bar or drinking venue
If it an unplanned visit to a bar, lounge or other drinking place, especially one that you are very familiar with, you can leave your car there, if you feel too tipsy to drive.
8. Go with a sober driver
If you are sure that you will be too drunk to drive home, then take along a sober driver that will drive you back home.
9. Get a lift with someone who has not been drinking or using drugs
Ask for a lift from someone at the venue who did not participate in the drinking or indulgence in recreational drugs.
10. Stay at a friend’s house
If you are feeling to inebriated to drive home, then stay over at a friend’s house that is not too far from the venue of the rendezvous.
