Those driving on New Year's Eve should be especially careful: not only do the number of car accidents tend to double over the night of 31 December and 1 January in Belgium but the number of motor incidents involving at least one intoxicated driver more than triple.
According to a recent study by the Vias Institute, Belgium's research centre specialising in road safety, 63 car accidents are recorded on average over New Year's compared to 30 on a typical evening. Moreover, the number of road incidents involving at least one inebriated driver rises from 7 to 22.
The same study also noted that more than a third (35%) of all accidents over New Year's are caused by at least one inebriated driver, while over Christmas the rate is only 26%. On a normal night, it is 16%.
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The number of alcohol-related road accidents was found to remain high until 09:00 on New Year's Day: 06:00 to 07:00 was discovered to be a particularly dangerous time, with 60% of all accidents during this period found to involve at least one intoxicated driver.
Promisingly, Belgians seem to be overwhelmingly in favour of preventing drunk friends from driving: a mere 4% reported that they would not say or do anything if an intoxicated friend insisted on getting behind the wheel.
Worryingly however, the number of road accidents this year might well be higher than usual, with Belgium's Royal Meteorological Institute (IRM) predicting rainy and windy weather over the coming New Year's weekend. In addition, New Year's Eve falls on a Saturday this year, making the likelihood of drink-driving even greater.
