Education on the dangers of drunk driving must be stepped up
(From The Japan Times Nov. 21 issue)

要約
飲酒運転防止教育の強化を

Recent traffic incidents show that some people are not aware of the serious nature of drunk driving. While the use of marijuana among university students has been in the public limelight recently, drunk driving — an infinitely more common problem with far deadlier results — should be the subject of equally serious discussion.

On the night of Nov. 17, a superintendent of the Metropolitan Police Department was arrested on suspicion of drunk driving in Inashiki, Ibaraki Prefecture. He was so drunk that he was unsteady on his feet. As a man who spent most of his career in traffic safety, including a stint at the Tokyo Metropolitan Government as head of a section to promote traffic safety until the end of March this year, he should have known not to drive a car while under the influence of alcohol.

Recently, Osaka Prefecture has seen more serious drunk-driving cases. On Nov. 5, a 22-year-old man was arrested in connection with the death of a 30-year-old male company employee. It is suspected that his car hit the man in Umeda, Osaka, early Oct. 21 and dragged him about three kilometers. The driver had no driver's license. On Nov. 16, a 41-year-old man was arrested in a similar case. It is suspected that his car hit a 16-year-old newspaper delivery boy early in the morning in Tondabayashi, Osaka Prefecture, and dragged him about seven kilometers.

In Osaka Prefecture, there were 830 hit-and-run incidents in 2007 — more than twice that of Tokyo — followed by 463 in Saitama Prefecture and 430 in Kanagawa Prefecture. Drunk driving is the No. 1 cause of these incidents throughout the nation. Education on the dangers of drunk driving must be stepped up. In addition, heavier conditions should be set on re-issuing driver's licenses to people who have been caught driving while drunk.

最近の運転事故は飲酒運転に対する認識の甘さを露呈した。大学生の大麻使用が世間の注目を浴びる中、より件数が多く致命的結果を招く飲酒運転も同じように真剣に議論されるべきだ。

茨城県稲敷市で警視庁の警視が酒酔い運転の疑いで逮捕された。逮捕当時、足がふらつくほど酔っていた彼は、3月まで東京都の交通安全対策担当課長を務めるなど交通畑を歩いてきた。大阪では梅田で30歳会社員を3キロ引きずり殺害した容疑で無免許の22歳男が、富田林市で新聞配達中の16歳少年を約7キロ引きずり殺害した容疑で41歳男がそれぞれ逮捕された。

ひき逃げ事件の原因は飲酒運転が最も多い。飲酒運転防止教育を強化し、飲酒運転で捕まった者への免許再発行の条件を厳しくすべきだ。