EVALUATION OF A PUBLICITY AND ENFORCEMENT CAMPAIGN TO BREATH TEST ANY DRIVERS DETECTED SPEEDING AT NIGHT

A publicity and enforcement campaign was conducted jointly by the Victoria police and the road traffic authority from November 1988 to January 1989. The campaign sought to increase the perceived risk of detection for drink driving by requiring that drivers detected speeding at night give a breath sample for preliminary analysis for alcohol. An evaluation of the campaign is reported, using data from three surveys of the target group and data from accidents that occurred during the period of interest and a similar period 12 months prior to the campaign. The accident data analysis was not powerful enough to detect an effect, but the results of the surveys provide evidence that the campaign was successful. The data indicate that drivers were aware of the publicity and its content, that drivers' attitudes to speeding at night changed, and that self reported drink driving may have been influenced by the campaign. (Author/TRRL)