Table 23

Drivers Breath Tested

Motorists involved in accidents, breath tested and breath test results, by police force
Years: 1985, 1986⁽¹⁾, 1995 to 1999

Year

Northern

Grampian

Tayside

Fife

Lothian & Borders

Central

Strathclyde

Dumfries & Galloway

Scotland

(a) Numbers

Motorists involved

1985

1,431

3,336

2,421

1,882

5,779

1,270

13,865

791

30,775

1986

1,289

3,132

2,273

1,716

5,446

1,412

13,332

850

29,450

1995

1,359

2,413

2,095

1,258

5,020

1,106

11,936

660

25,847

1996

1,322

2,243

2,081

1,220

5,435

1,192

11,199

613

25,305

1997

1,391

2,438

2,024

1,420

5,435

1,376

12,146

647

26,877

1998

1,459

2,214

2,018

1,213

5,644

1,264

12,057

724

26,593

1999

1,377

1,938

1,994

1,170

5,115

1,202

11,322

599

24,717

Breath test requested

1985

189

564

497

353

483

191

1,396

102

3,775

1986

667

2,004

1,692

475

2,817

973

9,431

221

18,280

1995

1,044

1,806

1,681

977

3,022

712

7,833

501

17,576

1996

1,040

1,719

1,682

911

3,369

719

7,480

433

17,353

1997

1,058

1,870

1,667

1,086

3,271

796

7,998

498

18,244

1998

1,100

1,623

1,688

915

3,578

738

7,939

553

18,134

1999

1,052

1,431

1,651

883

3,196

684

7,272

457

16,626

Positive/ refused

1985

79

186

84

94

189

73

475

30

1,210

1986

75

164

87

68

162

58

472

32

1,118

1995

63

73

37

31

86

24

247

16

577

1996

61

65

48

27

73

28

237

17

556

1997

77

66

55

29

86

28

224

22

587

1998

56

63

50

26

80

25

219

29

548

1999

69

54

54

23

75

14

209

14

512

(b) Percentages

Breath test requested as percent of motorists involved

1985

13.2

16.9

20.5

18.8

8.4

15.0

10.1

12.9

12.3

1986

51.7

64.0

74.4

27.7

51.7

68.9

70.7

26.0

62.1

1995

76.8

74.8

80.2

77.7

60.2

64.4

65.6

75.9

68.0

1996

78.7

76.6

80.8

74.7

62.0

60.3

66.8

70.6

68.6

1997

76.1

76.7

82.4

76.5

60.2

57.8

65.8

77.0

67.9

1998

75.4

73.3

83.6

75.4

63.4

58.4

65.8

76.4

68.2

1999

76.4

73.8

82.8

75.5

62.5

56.9

64.2

76.3

67.3

Positive/refused as percent of motorists involved

1985

5.5

5.6

3.5

5.0

3.3

5.7

3.4

3.8

3.9

1986

5.8

5.2

3.8

4.0

3.0

4.1

3.5

3.8

3.8

1995

4.6

3.0

1.8

2.5

1.7

2.2

2.1

2.4

2.2

1996

4.6

2.9

2.3

2.2

1.3

2.3

2.1

2.8

2.2

1997

5.5

2.7

2.7

2.0

1.6

2.0

1.8

3.4

2.2

1998

3.8

2.8

2.5

2.1

1.4

2.0

1.8

4.0

2.1

1999

5.0

2.8

2.7

2.0

1.5

1.2

1.8

2.3

2.1

Positive/refused as percent of those where breath test requested

1985

41.8

33.0

16.9

26.6

39.1

38.2

34.0

29.4

32.1

1986

11.2

8.2

5.1

14.3

5.8

6.0

5.0

14.5

6.1

1995

6.0

4.0

2.2

3.2

2.8

3.4

3.2

3.2

3.3

1996

5.9

3.8

2.9

3.0

2.2

3.9

3.2

3.9

3.2

1997

7.3

3.5

3.3

2.7

2.6

3.5

2.8

4.4

3.2

1998

5.1

3.9

3.0

2.8

2.2

3.4

2.8

5.2

3.0

1999

6.6

3.8

3.3

2.6

2.3

2.0

2.9

3.1

3.1