Police should clarify new law banning drinking in vehicles

At first blush, I thought it an absurd law as it implies that even a sober driver cannot have intoxicated passengers in the vehicle. Through consulting with my peers, I now realise the change means that passengers are not allowed to physically consume alcohol while inside the car. But a sober driver is still able to drive his/her intoxicated friends home, so long as the friends don’t drink inside the vehicle.

Nevertheless, like most things, the devil is in the details. First, if passengers are caught drinking in the car, will the sober driver or the passengers be charged? Or both? Second, what if the passengers are intoxicated from drinking at a pub, but the car they are in happens to have some unopened beers in the trunk? Will the police erroneously link the two together? Third, what if the driver and the passengers are sober and not drinking but they have half a bottle of whiskey left in the car, will the police, likewise, link to two together? At best, this new law needs some clarifications and elaboration. At worst, it deliberately grants more power to police officers to search the vehicles and leaves room for corruption among them at check-points.

Edward Kitlertsirivatana

Bangkok