Alarming new figures from the Automobile Association (AA) show drink driving deaths have doubled over the last 10 years.
The AA released the figures on Thursday morning showing 111 people died in 2022 in car crashes where a driver was over the limit according to Waka Kotahi figures obtained through the Official Information Act.
AA road safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen said the leap in alcohol-related fatalities is hugely concerning.
"It's more than double the 53 drunk driving deaths recorded in 2013. It seems to show the relationship between alcohol and driving in this country is getting worse," Thomsen said.
"Right now New Zealand is losing the battle on drunk driving. The numbers are getting worse rather than better and we have to flip that around."
The data showed that between 2018 and 2022 the three worst affected regions have been Waikato (132 alcohol-related deaths) Auckland (89) and Northland (79).
The tragically high numbers recorded last year follow years of missed breath screening targets, according to the AA.
"The target is for police to test 3,000,000 drivers a year for alcohol and that level hasn't been reached since 2014," Thomsen said.
"Testing numbers for the current year are trending up and will be over 2,000,000 for the first time in years but there is still more that needs to be done."
Thomsen believes the police need to be doing more to curb the alarming new figures.
He said there aren't enough alcohol checkpoints, which the AA say are a "critical tool" in preventing deaths and serious injuries on our roads.
"For checkpoints to act as an effective deterrent drivers need to regularly be seeing them - as well as being a deterrent they are a crucial final line of defence to stop impaired drivers harming themselves and others," he said.
The AA said increased breath testing is not a singular solution to curbing road deaths, but it's an important road safety measure combined with more use of alcohol interlocks, specialist alcohol and other drug courts and rehabilitation treatment for drunk drivers that are caught.
"Under its Road to Zero strategy, the Government has set a goal of reducing the road toll by 40 percent by 2030," Thomsen said.
"We all know that the Police are facing a monumental challenge trying to deliver the enforcement people want but the Government has to find a solution to get alcohol checkpoint numbers back up and start turning the tide on drunk driving."
