This week we learned that the government is studying how to significantly reduce the blood alcohol level that drivers can have in Spain.
Concretely, to date, The maximum permitted level is 0.5 grams of alcohol per litre of blood..
And what the Minister of the Interior, Fernando Grande-Marlaska, announced is that he is studying the reduction of the alcohol level from 0.5 grams per liter to a new rate of 0.2 grams of alcohol per litre maximum.
| Current maximum rate | Maximum rate you wish to approve | |
| General driver | 0.5 grams of alcohol per liter of blood | 0.2 grams of alcohol per liter of blood |
If this new limit is achieved, Spain would be one of the European countries with the lowest maximum alcohol level.
Concretely, only Estonia, Norway, Poland and Sweden They have a rate similar to the one that Spain wants to impose, of 0.2 grams of alcohol per liter of blood.
Alcohol control by the Civil Traffic Guard.
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With a Even higher rates would apply to the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary and Romania.which do not allow a single gram behind the wheel.
On the contrary, Neighbouring countries such as France, Germany and Portugal remain at 0.5 grams per litre of blood.that is, a rate higher than what Spain wants to impose, as this table shows.
| Country | Maximum permitted blood alcohol level |
| Germany | <0.5g/liter |
| Austria | <0.5g/liter |
| Belgium | <0.5g/liter |
| Bulgaria | <0.5g/liter |
| Czech Republic | 0.0g/liter |
| Cyprus | <0.5g/liter |
| Croatia | <0.5g/liter |
| Denmark | <0.5g/liter |
| Slovakia | 0.0g/liter |
| Slovenia | <0.5g/liter |
| Spain | <0.5g/liter |
| Estonia | <0.2g/liter |
| Finland | <0.5g/liter |
| France | <0.5g/liter |
| Greece | <0.5g/liter |
| Hungary | 0.0g/liter |
| Ireland | <0.5g/liter |
| Italy | <0.5g/liter |
| Latvia | <0.5g/liter |
| Lithuania | <0.4g/liter |
| Luxembourg | <0.5g/liter |
| Malta | <0.5g/liter |
| Norway | <0.2g/liter |
| The Netherlands | <0.5g/liter |
| Poland | <0.2g/liter |
| Portugal | <0.5g/liter |
| Romania | 0.0g/liter |
| Suede | <0.2g/liter |
| Swiss | <0.5g/liter |
How much alcohol did you test positive for?
Although there is no fixed rule here, since the figures depend on each person, the DGT offers an informative table of the level of alcohol a person will have based on the alcohol ingested.
For example, starting with beer with a 33 cl bottle, what we call a third, a man would already have an alcohol level between 0.21 g/l and 0.28 g/l.
SO, With just one bottle of beer, a person would test positive if the rule was changed.
With two-thirds of beer bottles, the rate would be between 0.43 g/l and 0.55 g/l. And three-thirds of beer would be between 0.64 g/l and 0.83 g/l.
| Beer | Rates in men | Rates among women |
| 1 bottle of 33cl | 0.21 – 0.28 | 0.34 – 0.38 |
| 2 bottles of 33 cl | 0.43 – 0.55 | 0.68 – 0.95 |
| 3 bottles of 33 cl | 0.64 – 0.83 | 1.02 – 1.43 |
In the case of camewe could say that beyond a glass it would be positiveas can be seen below.
| Came | Rates in men | Rates among women |
| 1 glass of 100 ml | 0.16 – 0.20 | 0.25 – 0.35 |
| 2 glasses of 100 ml | 0.31 – 0.40 | 0.50 – 0.69 |
| 3 glasses of 100 ml | 0.47 – 0.60 | 0.74 – 1.04 |
And if we talk about a combinedagain with just one glass of distilled alcohol, even with a soft drink, they would already make us give a positive result on the breathalyzer if they lowered the maximum rate to 0.2 g/l:
| Combined | Rates in men | Rates among women |
| 1 glass of 50 ml | 0.25 – 0.32 | 0.39 – 0.55 |
| 2 glasses of 50 ml | 0.49 – 0.63 | 0.78 – 1.10 |
| 3 glasses of 50 ml | 0.74 – 0.95 | 1.18 – 1.65 |
DGT recommends 0.0%
However, and despite the fact that the maximum authorized rates allow a minimum quantity of alcohol, the DGT still insists that “The only safe rate is 0.0%because even with a blood alcohol level within the legal limits, the risk of causing an accident can be increased,” says the organization.
In this sense, the DGT recalls that alcohol is a central nervous system depressant which impairs driving.
If it finally goes down to 0.2 grams of alcohol in the blood in Spain with a beer, it could be positive.
“Initially, it produces euphoria, which causes loss of control, reduces risk perception, changes behavior and impairs psychomotor function. And all of these factors impair driving abilities.”
Similarly, drivers believe that the risk of an accident only exists when alcohol consumption is high. However, even with low levels of consumption, negative effects on driving ability already appear.
Effects of alcohol on the body
When a person drinks an alcoholic beverage, alcohol is absorbed in the digestive system: up to 25% in the stomach and a higher percentage in the small intestine. From there when it passes into the blood reaching the highest concentration between 30 and 90 minutes after ingestion.
Once absorbed and entered the bloodstream, alcohol is distributed throughout the body. And, from there, The more alcohol there is in the blood, the higher the blood alcohol level will be.. And the higher the blood alcohol level, the greater the effects on driving. However, this absorption depends on several factors, such as:
- Whether the stomach is full or empty: if the stomach is empty, more alcohol passes into the blood, so it is not recommended to drink alcohol without having eaten.
- Drinks such as beer or wine (fermented drinks) have a slower absorption of alcohol, while in distilled drinks (gin, rum or whiskey) the absorption is faster. Therefore, with those intended for use, the alcohol content is higher.
- Absorption also depends on how fast you drink. The faster the absorption rate, the faster it is.
- And finally, it also affects the person’s tolerance level. Women tend to have a higher blood alcohol level with the same amount of drink. Similarly, chronic drinkers absorb alcohol more quickly.
500 drivers test positive every day
This hardening is determined shortly after it was learned that The DGT detected around 543 drivers consuming alcohol and/or drugs every day. during the last special monitoring and control campaign developed in August.
In total, the Civil Guard Traffic Group agents checked 225,946 drivers (14,000 more than in last year’s campaign), including 3,801 people tested positive for alcohol and/or drugs.
Regarding screening tests for alcohol, over the seven days, 221,752 were carried out and 2,156 drivers tested positive. Of these, 1,930 were detected during preventive checks, 108 after committing an offence, 107 others for having been involved in an accident and 11 others for having presented obvious symptoms of ingestion of this substance.
Regarding drugs, of the 4,194 detection tests carried out on drivers, 1,645 were positive. in the indicative tests. Among them, 1,466 were detected during preventive checks, 104 after committing an offence and 75 for having been involved in an accident.
Regarding the type of drug, the DGT indicated that, as usual, among the most consumed are: cannabis (1,203 cases), cocaine (565 cases) and amphetamines (233 cases).
According to the road safety prosecutor’s office in its annual report, In 2023, 50,071 convictions were handed down for driving under the influence of alcohol. (level greater than 0.60 mg/l in the air or 1.2 g/l in the blood) or under the influence of medication.
Between January 1 and September 11, 801 people died on the roadswhich means 17 additional deaths than over the same period in 2023, an increase of 2%.
