The way some sober people drive, it’s hard to imagine how a drunk driver could be any more dangerous in some situations. The fact of the matter is, however, that alcohol is a uniquely dangerous drug in terms of its effects on drivers. The drug has effects that are, unfortunately, specifically detrimental to people’s ability to drive.
Judgment
Alcohol affects your judgment in that it tends to eliminate it altogether. A perfectly sensible person may become remarkably naive and, sometimes, impulsive when they drink. One of the most dangerous affects that alcohol has on people where driving is concerned is that it affects their perception of their skills and abilities. It makes them think that they’re perfectly in charge and capable of handling driving, which is usually not at all the case.
Timing
Alcohol affects your timing. Because of this, it’s almost impossible for drunks to stop predictably when they want to turn off or park. This is one of the reasons that you’ll see drunk drivers erratically stopping and starting in the middle of the road. They may be trying to turn off but be unable to correctly judge a corner.
Balance
You do need a sense of balance when you drive. When you don’t have one, the world can seem to spin and this can be a very dangerous thing. For very intoxicated people, it’s hard to determine where something is relative to their own body. Unfortunately, that means that they oftentimes cannot judge where another car is and end up hitting it accidentally.
Reaction Time
Alcohol makes you feel like you have the reflexes of an athlete while actually slowing them to the point that your reflexes are basically gone. Every second you’re on the road you’re making tiny corrections in your vehicle’s path of travel reflexively. If you don’t believe it, try holding your steering wheel straight and see how long it takes before you start to go off course. Driving takes very precise reflexes and alcohol destroys them altogether.
Rage
Alcohol makes some people very, very nasty to deal with. Give them two tons of car, an inflated sense of their abilities and no judgment and you have an accident waiting to happen. Chances are, no one will be waiting for long, unfortunately.
Contact a Dallas car accident attorney if a drunk driver hits you. Car accident lawyer services can be engaged on contingency, which means money is not an issue up front.
