Surry County SPF-SIG Research Findings...
Surry County SPF-SIG Project Highlights:
322 Adult Surveys Collected
444 Youth Surveys Collected
31 On-Premise Retail Locations Visited
22 Off-Premise Retail Locations Visited
4 Town Hall Meetings with 18 Total Participants
6 Youth Focus Groups with 78 Total Participants
2 Hispanic Adult Focus Groups with 24 Participants
2 Substance Abuse Treatment Groups Visited
135 Editions of 4 Local Newspapers Reviewed
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Analysis of Impaired Driving Charges and Implied Consent Charges Disposed,
by Charge Convicted Surry County
Year |
2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Totals |
818 |
790 |
722 |
705 |
799 |
The Surry County populations appearing to have the highest risks for alcohol-involved crashes and fatalities
include males, ages 20-24 and 25-34. Teenagers (aged 16-19) comprised 5.0% of the county population in
2005, but were involved in 11.1% of the alcohol related-crashes reported during the time period of 2001-2006.
(Highway Safety Research Center, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 2007)
| Chart 3-2 | ||||||
Male Subgroups Most Affected by Alcohol-Related Crashes in Surry County (2002-2006) |
||||||
| Crashes % | 10-19 |
20-24 |
25-34 |
35-44 |
45-54 |
55+ |
| White | 1.27% |
4.49% |
1.82% |
1.80% |
1.34% |
0.29% |
| Black | 0.00% |
2.54% |
4.04% |
1.49% |
1.43% |
0.69% |
| Hispanic | 1.43% |
3.88% |
3.77% |
1.15% |
1.35% |
0.35% |
| Chart 3-3 | ||||||
Female Subgroups Most Affected by Alcohol-Related Crashes in Surry County (2002-2006) |
||||||
| Crashes % | 10-19 |
20-24 |
25-34 |
35-44 |
45-54 |
55+ |
| White | 0.14% |
0.76% |
0.50% |
0.44% |
0.26% |
0.08% |
| Black | 0.00% |
0.93% |
1.77% |
0.46% |
0.44% |
0.28% |
| Hispanic | 0.00% |
0.00% |
0.00% |
0.00% |
0.00% |
0.00% |
Source: Surry SPF-SIG Project North Carolina SPF-SIG Community Needs Assessment Workbook |
||||||
Information collected indicated the following patterns regarding alcohol-related crashes and fatalities
within our community between 2001-2006:
• Out of 759 total alcohol-related automobile crashes from 2001-2006, 84% (640) occurred in rural Surry County (outside of town or city limits)
• Over 85% of all alcohol-related automobile crashes occurred on undivided two-laneroads
• Road conditions contributed to alcohol-involved crashes, with at least 55% of crashes occurring on straight grades. 38% occurred in curves
• Nineteen crashes occurred in parking lots within the county
• 17% of all automobiles involved in alcoholrelated crashes were registered in states other than North Carolina. Automobiles registered in Virginia were involved in 7.8% of all crashes
• Single car crashes involving alcohol accounted for 65% of all crashes. Almost 30% of other crashes involved two vehicles
| Chart 3-5 | ||||||
Number of Alcohol-Involved Crashes by Month on State-Maintained Roads in Surry County (2002-2006) |
||||||
| Month | 2002 |
2003 |
2004 |
2005 |
2006 |
Total |
| January | 5 |
11 |
1 |
7 |
10 |
34 |
| February | 5 |
9 |
8 |
8 |
9 |
39 |
| March | 14 |
9 |
8 |
13 |
11 |
55 |
| April | 12 |
9 |
5 |
7 |
8 |
41 |
| May | 7 |
8 |
8 |
9 |
7 |
39 |
| June | 6 |
8 |
13 |
12 |
7 |
46 |
| July | 12 |
2 |
13 |
16 |
5 |
48 |
| August | 14 |
11 |
8 |
12 |
9 |
54 |
| September | 13 |
13 |
8 |
3 |
12 |
49 |
| October | 11 |
4 |
12 |
8 |
12 |
47 |
| November | 12 |
10 |
11 |
4 |
13 |
50 |
| December | 4 |
11 |
7 |
11 |
6 |
39 |
| Total | 115 |
105 |
102 |
110 |
109 |
541 |
| Source: UNC Crash Data http://www.hsrc.unc.edu/crash | ||||||
• Data suggests that ages 20-24 and 25-34 are impacted by alcohol-related crashes more than any other age groups, secondly and almost as alarming, teenagers 16-19 accounted for 11.1% of all alcohol related crashes, but only comprise 5.0% of the county population
• Data collected indicates that 84% of all alcohol-related crashes from 2001-2006 occurred in rural settings outside of town or city limits. These rural crashes frequently happened on twolane state roads on both level and curved grades. Within city or town limits, Mount Airy, with 119 crashes, had the greatest number
Comments from the Community
• Youth and parents who see providing alcohol to
minors as ‘cool’
• Some do not see anything wrong with drinking
and driving
• Parents think hosting alcohol parties will ‘safely’
prepare teens going away to college where drinking
will go on
• Parents need to know that serving alcohol to
youth is not permissible
• Community exhibits frequent lack of caring or
concern for drunk driving until the event hits
personally or within the family
• Many see nothing wrong with drinking, some
see nothing wrong with drinking and driving
• Many, regardless of age, believe they will not
get caught while drinking and driving
• Odds of getting caught drinking and driving
are low
• Many believe that if caught, they can live with
the consequences
• Drivers frequently do not realize they have had
too much to drink
• Younger Hispanic males do not understand the
law and think they can drive and drink like
they do in Mexico
• Some consider driving around while drinking
recreation
• Drinking at a friends or family members’ home
and driving home afterwards is common
Low perceived risks of arrest and penalties:
* Belief that there is a low risk of getting caught drinking
* Belief that penalties for underage drinking are not serious
* Belief that there are too few law-enforcement officers to catch underage drinkers
* Perception that there is a risk for drinking and driving but nothing else related to alcohol use
* Lack of knowledge of penalties concerning providing alcohol to minors
* Lack of police involvement when schools fail to report alcohol violations
Community Perception
Low perceived risk of alcohol use:
Alcohol is not as dangerous as other drugs
Belief that alcohol is safe except when driving
Belief that hard liquor is dangerous but beer is not
Comments linked to Low Perceived Risks and related to alcohol use collected during the SPF-SIG
Needs Assessment Process
• Alcohol, easily obtained, is the local drug of choice and hard to get away from
• When drinking, people lose their judgment
• Youths do not believe it is wrong to drink alcohol
• At home, many see parents drink and think it is okay
• Teenagers are allowed to taste alcohol at home
• Some parents think it is ok to provide alcohol to minors
• Youths drink with parents permission
• Some parents prefer children to drink at home where they can keep an eye on them instead of in public places
• Both girls and boys see their parents drink and think it is okay
• Parents supplying and hosting parties serving alcohol is common
• Parents try to show off when they provide alcohol
• Many parents deny that their children drink
• Many parents lack education regarding the legal ramification of providing alcohol to minors
• Most find it unacceptable to serve alcohol to a child, but certain groups find it acceptable for youth to drink
• Culture seems to be an issue with this topic
• Fathers give alcohol to their sons, usually beer
• Sons drink because fathers drink
• It is macho to drink excessively
• Youth do not realize the impact that even one drink has on their driving ability
• Friends know that underage drinking occurs, but will not tell adults
• Some think excessive drinking is okay
Contributing Factors Related to Alcohol Involved Crashes in Surry County
Surry County Adults Failing to Understand the Consequences of Providing Alcohol to Minors
Surry County Drivers Failing to Understand the Impact of Alcohol Consumption on Driving Ability
Surry County Drivers Believe They Can Live with the Consequences if Charged with an Alcohol-Related Offense
Surry County Community Needs Assessment (March 2008)
Photos by Jennifer Lee Johnson
Unlimited Success
A Division of Partnership for a Drug Free NC, Inc.
7830 North Point Boulevard, Suite 131 Winston Salem, NC 27101
Phone (336) 397-0154
http://www.drugfreenc.org/
Project is supported with funds from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA), the Center for Substance Abuse Prevention (CSAP), and the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS).
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