RETURNING DRUNK FROM TIJUANA BARS: CHARACTERISTICS OF BINGE DRINKERS CROSSING INTO SAN DIEGO

While many within the San Diego Community assumed that the problem of young people crossing the border into Tijuana to visit bars and night clubs was large, the full magnitude and consistency of binge drinking at the border had never been established scientifically. Of greatest concern is the number of those who drive home from the border after binge drinking. The purpose of this study was to identify some of the characteristics of these drinkers. May 1998 marked the end of the first year of data collection with a once-a-month breath test survey Wednesday nights between 11:00 PM and 4:00 AM, and Friday and Saturday nights between 12:00 AM and 6:00 AM. Participants were recruited from vehicles, and pedestrians were randomly diverted from the stream of crossers heading back into the U.S. Results suggest that on average, crossing into the U.S. between 500 and 650 motorists and pedestrians planning to drive are over California's legal limit of BAC .08 each weekend night. Approximately 200 to 300 additional drivers under age 21 violate California's Zero Tolerance law at the border. The demographics of pedestrian border crossers are different from drivers. Almost 75% of returning motorists are Hispanic, while 50.5% of the pedestrians are Caucasions. There are also differences in occupational associations, with drivers far more likely to be workers (many probably commuting), while almost half of the pedestrians are U.S. students or in the military. The, the substantial DUI problem comes mainly from intoxicated pedestrian crossers returning to cars parked on the U.S. side of the border.

• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/issn/08926484
• Corporate Authors:

  ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF AUTOMOTIVE MEDICINE (AAAM)

  2350 EAST DEVON AVENUE, SUITE 205
  DES PLAINES,   United States  60018
• Authors:
  • Lange, J
  • Voas, Robert B
  • Kelley-Baker, T
• Conference:
  • 42nd Annual Conference of the Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine
  • Location: Charlottesville, Virginia
  • Date: 1998-10-5 to 1998-10-7
• Publication Date: 1998

Language

• English

Media Info

• Pagination: p. 427-428
• Serial:
  • Publication of: ASSOCIATION FOR THE ADVANCEMENT OF AUTOMOTIVE MEDICINE
  • Publisher: Association for the Advancement of Automotive Medicine (AAAM)
  • ISSN: 0892-6484

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Alcohol breath tests; Alcohol use; Blood alcohol levels; Demographics; Drunk drivers; International borders; Intoxication; Pedestrians; Traffic safety; Zero tolerance
• Uncontrolled Terms: Binge drinking
• Geographic Terms: San Diego (California); Tijuana (Mexico)
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors; Security and Emergencies; Society; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00767407
• Record Type: Publication
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Aug 16 1999 12:00AM