Promile service informs drivers instantly about blood alcohol content

Prague, Dec 29 (CTK) - The service Promile info can tell Czechs how to easily find out whether they have still alcohol in their blood and when it will disappear, Josef Sedivy from the civic group Sananim, the service's operator, told CTK yesterday.

Those interested can send their question to Promile info via SMS, wap or the Internet, Sedivy said.

"The number of those interested almost quadruples by the end of the year. On December 2009-January 2, 2010 the service dealt with 1886 requests, which means an average of 472 a day. This year, the daily average number has been 125," Sananim executive director Jiri Richter said.

The use of the service bears witness to the responsibility of the people who drank some alcohol and wonder whether they can drive a car.

During the year, one-third of those asking the question do not have any alcohol in blood, while the proportion rises to one-half at around the New Year's Eve, Richter said.

Besides, the average age of the callers rises from 30 to 35 years, he added.

On the other hand, the proportion of the service users with alcohol level exceeding one per thousand significantly rises in the same period, Richter said.

The service works via the SMS, wap and webpage www.promile.info.

Those interested send a question along with data on their sex, age and weight as well as the beginning of their consumption of alcohol beverages, their type and quantity.

Within a minute, they receive the answer disclosing the actual alcohol level in their blood and the approximate time by which it will fall to zero.

One Promile info service costs nine crowns. The money is then sent to the programmes battling alcohol addiction.

The service has been existing for five years. It has been used by almost 110,000 people.

Men account for over 80 percent of users of the service, Richter said.

($1 = 19.210 crowns)