'Drink drivers are full of it,' is the freshly brewed South Australia Police road safety campaign launched today to curb drink driving on South Australian roads.
Aiming to confront the selfish choices that fuel drink driving offences, the new campaign underscores SA Police research findings that show drink drivers are taking themselves for a ride.
Traffic Services Branch Officer in Charge, Superintendent Darren Fielke said the innovative campaign which features a drink driver's vehicle filling with beer or wine, sends a new message that leaves drink drivers with nowhere to turn.
"Road users across South Australia will see this campaign. There are still some people who think it's okay to drink drive and this campaign is here to tell them that they're full of it," Superintendent Fielke said.
"Police have heard drink driving excuses from, 'I can handle my alcohol,' and 'I don't have a licence so what does it matter?' to 'I'm not paying for a cab.'
"Our campaign message is clear - If you still think it's ok to drink and drive, you are full of it."
Throughout three filming days, the production team used a Port Adelaide warehouse and surrounding streets to set the scene, bringing a scene of grim symbolism to life to represent the potential horror of drink-driving.
Set engineers disassembled a car to apply watertight seals and other trickery that enabled vehicles to be filled with liquid. Around 60,000 litres of fake wine and beer were pumped into the cars to create the symbolism for the campaign statement that 'drink drivers are full of it'.
Actors playing drink driver roles wore wetsuits during record cold temperature nights to create the scene of driving in a vehicle full of beer and wine. Additionally, stunt crews staged a rear-end collision and a head on with a stobie pole.
Minister for Police Dan Cregan said the highly visible campaign would leave selfish drivers with no excuse.
"If you plan on having a drink then you must plan to get home safely," Minister Cregan said.
"It is important to remember that your actions can have the most serious consequences for you and others around you."
Last year, drink driving was a factor in 100 serious injuries and 19 lives lost and police caught 5,595 drink drivers on SA roads.
Between 2019 and 2023, 17 per cent of all fatal crashes and 10 per cent of serious injury crashes involved at least one driver or rider with a Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) over the legal limit. Crash statistics and expiation data indicate a demographic skew toward male drivers between the ages of 20-29 and 30-39.
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