Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)

Objectives To evaluate the prevalence of drink driving and speeding during 2015–2018 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.Design Cross-sectional observational study.Setting Roads representing the five main regions of the city of Sao Paulo in Brazil, one of the world’s largest urban areas.Participants Drivers (N=10 ...

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Main Authors: Katharine A Allen, Adnan A Hyder, Andres I Vecino-Ortiz, Gabriel Andreuccetti, Vilma Leyton, Heráclito Barbosa Carvalho, Daniele M Sinagawa, Henrique S Bombana, Julio C Ponce
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2019-08-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/8/e030294.full
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author Katharine A Allen
Adnan A Hyder
Andres I Vecino-Ortiz
Gabriel Andreuccetti
Vilma Leyton
Heráclito Barbosa Carvalho
Daniele M Sinagawa
Henrique S Bombana
Julio C Ponce
author_facet Katharine A Allen
Adnan A Hyder
Andres I Vecino-Ortiz
Gabriel Andreuccetti
Vilma Leyton
Heráclito Barbosa Carvalho
Daniele M Sinagawa
Henrique S Bombana
Julio C Ponce
author_sort Katharine A Allen
collection DOAJ
description Objectives To evaluate the prevalence of drink driving and speeding during 2015–2018 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.Design Cross-sectional observational study.Setting Roads representing the five main regions of the city of Sao Paulo in Brazil, one of the world’s largest urban areas.Participants Drivers (N=10 294) stopped at routine roadside breath testing checkpoints and those driving in selected roads for speeding measurement (N=414 664).Primary and secondary outcome measures Microwave radar guns were used to measure the speed of vehicles, while the prevalence of drivers under the influence of alcohol was observed in police checkpoints. Data were collected during three consecutive years (2016–2018) following a baseline study established in 2015 using a city-level representative sample of observational data representing all days of the week.Results Alcohol-related fatalities kept at a constantly high percentage, with 39% of road traffic deaths involving alcohol in 2016. Drivers testing above the legal breath alcohol concentration limit showed a decreasing trend, from 4.1% (95% CI 2.9% to 5.5%) at baseline to 0.6% (95% CI 0.2% to 1.2%) in the end of 2018 (p<0.001); however, more than half of drivers refused breath tests at checkpoints despite steep legal penalties. The prevalence of speeding among all vehicles decreased from 8.1% (95% CI 7.9% to 8.2%) to 4.9% (95% CI 4.7% to 5.1%) by the end of 2016 (p<0.001), but then increased again to 13.5% (95% CI 13.2% to 13.9%) at the end of the study period (p<0.001).Conclusions Drink driving rates have reduced, likely due to an increase in drivers refusing breath alcohol tests, while speeding rates have increased significantly by the end of the study period, particularly among motorcycles. Future strategies aiming at reducing road traffic injuries in the major Brazilian city should tailor drink driving and speeding enforcement based on the new evidence provided here.
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issn 2044-6055
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spelling doaj-art-668377aad608481cbc189bf86c5064c92024-11-26T15:50:10ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552019-08-019810.1136/bmjopen-2019-030294Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)Katharine A Allen0Adnan A Hyder1Andres I Vecino-Ortiz2Gabriel Andreuccetti3Vilma Leyton4Heráclito Barbosa Carvalho5Daniele M Sinagawa6Henrique S Bombana7Julio C Ponce83 Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USAGeorge Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health, Washington, DC, USA5 Department of International Health, Johns Hopkins School of Public Health, Baltimore, Maryland, USA1 Department of Legal Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil1 Department of Legal Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil2 Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil1 Department of Legal Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil1 Department of Legal Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, Brazil2 Department of Preventive Medicine, University of Sao Paulo Medical School, Sao Paulo, SP, BrazilObjectives To evaluate the prevalence of drink driving and speeding during 2015–2018 in Sao Paulo, Brazil.Design Cross-sectional observational study.Setting Roads representing the five main regions of the city of Sao Paulo in Brazil, one of the world’s largest urban areas.Participants Drivers (N=10 294) stopped at routine roadside breath testing checkpoints and those driving in selected roads for speeding measurement (N=414 664).Primary and secondary outcome measures Microwave radar guns were used to measure the speed of vehicles, while the prevalence of drivers under the influence of alcohol was observed in police checkpoints. Data were collected during three consecutive years (2016–2018) following a baseline study established in 2015 using a city-level representative sample of observational data representing all days of the week.Results Alcohol-related fatalities kept at a constantly high percentage, with 39% of road traffic deaths involving alcohol in 2016. Drivers testing above the legal breath alcohol concentration limit showed a decreasing trend, from 4.1% (95% CI 2.9% to 5.5%) at baseline to 0.6% (95% CI 0.2% to 1.2%) in the end of 2018 (p<0.001); however, more than half of drivers refused breath tests at checkpoints despite steep legal penalties. The prevalence of speeding among all vehicles decreased from 8.1% (95% CI 7.9% to 8.2%) to 4.9% (95% CI 4.7% to 5.1%) by the end of 2016 (p<0.001), but then increased again to 13.5% (95% CI 13.2% to 13.9%) at the end of the study period (p<0.001).Conclusions Drink driving rates have reduced, likely due to an increase in drivers refusing breath alcohol tests, while speeding rates have increased significantly by the end of the study period, particularly among motorcycles. Future strategies aiming at reducing road traffic injuries in the major Brazilian city should tailor drink driving and speeding enforcement based on the new evidence provided here.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/8/e030294.full
spellingShingle Katharine A Allen
Adnan A Hyder
Andres I Vecino-Ortiz
Gabriel Andreuccetti
Vilma Leyton
Heráclito Barbosa Carvalho
Daniele M Sinagawa
Henrique S Bombana
Julio C Ponce
Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
BMJ Open
title Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
title_full Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
title_fullStr Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
title_full_unstemmed Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
title_short Drink driving and speeding in Sao Paulo, Brazil: empirical cross-sectional study (2015–2018)
title_sort drink driving and speeding in sao paulo brazil empirical cross sectional study 2015 2018
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/9/8/e030294.full
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