These are the words of one young woman convicted of a drink driving offence in January this year.

Jess, 21, from the Forest of Dean is helping the Road Safety Partnership to launch this year’s awareness campaign in conjunction with Gloucestershire Police.

Jess says, “It was a moment of madness but it’s had a massive effect on my life. Because of the court hearings and time off work, I lost my job and I am still unemployed. There isn’t much public transport where I live and because I can’t drive I’ve lost some of my friends. I am just so thankful that I didn’t hurt anyone.”

Jess is just one of the many drivers in Gloucestershire who have taken the risk of driving with alcohol in their system. In last year’s Christmas crackdown, police arrested 52 people for drink driving after conducting over 1,300 breath tests.

Garry Handley from the Partnership said, “Any amount of alcohol will impair a driver’s ability to drive safely, and our message in this year’s campaign is absolutely clear, and that is to avoid drinking alcohol completely if you are driving.”

It takes longer for the body to eliminate alcohol than most driver’s realise – at least one hour for every unit of alcohol that you drink. And units are difficult to measure; drinks vary in size and strength, and any amount of alcohol can affect a driver’s ability to judge speed and distance, and it makes reactions slower.

As part of the awareness raising activities this December, the Partnership has joined forces with other road safety organisations through the West Midlands, West Mercia and Warwickshire to roll out a campaign called ‘CRIMINAL?’.

The campaign features 5 characters, all of whom have been convicted for a drink driving offence albeit under different circumstances, but all suffer the same conclusion which is to be branded a CRIMINAL.

Posters and beer mats in pubs will drive traffic to the campaign website, where the characters tell their stories using film, blogs and discussion boards. The site also includes an interview with a woman whose daughter was killed by a drink driver. Meet the characters and join in the discussion at http://www.over-the-limit.co.uk/.

Don’t guess, don’t gamble – have none for the road this Christmas.