Nobutada Iwase

Are lower legal blood alcohol limits and a combination of sanctions desirable in reducing drunken driver-involved traffic fatalities and traffic accidents?

In 1970 and 1978, a set of strict new countermeasures against drunk driving went in to effect in Japan. Analysis of official statistics of motor vehicle fatality data have indicated that alcohol involvement in fatal crashes has declined substantially in Japan since 1970. From the beginning of 1970 to the late 1980s and 1990s, public awareness of and tolerance for the problem of alcohol-impaired driving changed dramatically, as shown in this study. Further it seems that attitudes in Japan on drink driving have improved over the last 20 years or so, instep with a major program of government action. As well as being part of a long running campaign to reduce alcohol related road deaths and injuries, these accident savings are an important part of a national strategy which began in 1970, comprising a well structured legislative program introducing a lower legal limit, progressive penalties for those above the legal limit, over and above Police enforcement strategies underpinning the law and reinforcing the publicity massage. Enactment of the lower legal blood alcohol level with a combination of other severe sanctions is desirable for prevention of alcohol-related traffic casualties, DWI, and accidents, which is shown in this study. Finally, much of the current reduction in alcohol-related fatalities and morbidity reflects that Japanese society has largely endorsed alcohol impaired driving as a socially undesirable behavior. However, this study suggests that it is necessary for policy makers to understand that the DUI problem in Japan must be handled with diverse approaches, rather than relying exclusively on the deterrence based laws.

Child motor vehicle occupant and pedestrian casualties before and after enactment of child restraint seats legislation in Japan.

Problem. Prevention of injuries to child passengers is a significant public health priority, as motor vehicle-related injuries remain a leading cause of death for children in Japan. The purpose of compulsory child restraint seats legislation in April 2000 was to reduce the number of child passengers killed or injured in motor vehicle crashes. Methods. The objectives of this preliminary evaluation are to measure the effectiveness, benefits and usage of safety seats for child passengers aged 1–5 years by analysing the child casualty data for the period of 1997–2002. Population and vehicle miles travelled based injury and fatality rates were used to compare before and after legislation trends in child casualties. Results. Despite overall increases in the use of child restraint seats (as observed by different national surveys), overall casualty rates in motor vehicle occupants in the 1–5 year age group did not change (fatalities and serious injuries) or even increased (minor injuries). Conclusions. Casualties among restrained children have not decreased since the law came to effect in the year 2000, perhaps because of incorrect usage of the seats. Given that exposure to crash environments is increasing, traffic safety advocates and public health community need to be aware of the importance of child restraints as a means of reducing the likelihood of injury. It is necessary to implement effective community-based child safety seat campaigns to disseminate the information on appropriate restraint use and to increase efforts to enforce the existing legislation.

New trends in suicide in Japan

Suicide is the 10th leading cause of mortality in the world. It is just as common as road traffic deaths1 and a leading cause of death among the young. 2002 was the fifth consecutive year where there were more than 30 000 suicide deaths. The rate in Japan, 25 per 100 000, greatly …

CHILD CASUALTIES BEFORE AND AFTER ENACTMENT OF CHILD RESTRAINT SEATS (CRS) LEGISLATION IN JAPAN

Road Traffic Law Article 17-3-4 of April 2000 specifies the compulsory requirement for child safety seats in Japan. The objectives of this preliminary evaluation were to measure the effectiveness, benefits and usage of safety seats for child passengers aged 0–5 years by analyzing the child casualty data for the period of 1991–2002. Two statistical methods were used to quantify time trends (interrupted time series analysis, population based casualty rates estimations) of changes in child casualty incidence after implementation of compulsory child restraint seats law. Despite overall increases in the use of child restraint seats (as observed by different national surveys), casualties (fatalities and injuries) among restrained children have increased. Given that exposure to crash environments is increasing, traffic safety advocates need to be aware of the importance of child restraints as a means of reducing the likelihood of injury. It is necessary to implement an extensive community-based child safety seat campaign to disseminate the information on appropriate restraint use. Further prevention of motor vehicle occupant injuries to children will require the combined approaches of education, incentives for safe human behavior, legislation/enforcement, and environmental changes.

ALCOHOL RELATED TRAFFIC SAFETY LEGISLATION: Where Do We Stand Today?

There is a substantial amount of evidence from experimental studies to indicate that a variety of individual skills are impaired at blood alcohol concentrations (BACs) well below 0.05%. Epidemiological studies indicate that the risk of a crash increases sharply for drivers with BACs below 0.05%. The correlation between drunk driving and the risk of traffic accidents has been established on the individual as well as the aggregate level. The BAC level legally permitted is a public policy decision by legislators, while scientists can present experimental and epidemiological evidence indicating the BAC level at which psychomotor skills deteriorate and accident probabilities increase. There is considerable epidemiological evidence to support the fact that the risk of alcohol impaired drivers being involved in traffic crashes rises with increasing BACs. By contrast, the evidence on the BAC at which a driver should be regarded as committing an offence has been the subject of much debate and various legislative decisions. Historically, per se laws specify BAC levels which are a compromise figure intended to reflect both the point at which a driver becomes significantly more likely to be involved in an accident than a comparative driver with a zero BAC and that which is politically acceptable, but falls within the BAC region of increased accident liability. Therefore, the per se legislation in most countries has not kept pace with scientific progress. This study suggests that if saving lives on the road is an important issue, then, passing laws that incorporate scientific and epidemiological studies, is necessary.