Despite increased awareness of the horrific consequences of drinking and driving, far too many people still get behind the wheel knowing they are over the limit.
It is an indefensible, completely unacceptable decision, taken in the full knowledge that these drivers are placing themselves and other road users in grave danger.
There is simply no excuse, as the families of those killed by drunk drivers can testify.
The PSNI's clampdown on these drivers is a welcome step although the figures emerging from their recent campaign are quite alarming.
In the first three weeks of the campaign until December 18, there was an overall increase of 1.7 per cent on the same period last year.
In total, 241 drink drivers were stopped during this time, including some who were so drunk they could barely stand.
This is absolutely shocking and thankfully the police detected these reckless and irresponsible individuals before they caused a tragedy on our roads.
But as Chief Inspector Diane Pennington rightly pointed out, officers should not be detecting anyone drinking and driving because it should not be happening in the first place.
Given the appalling death toll on Northern Ireland's roads, there can be no let up in efforts to reinforce the message that all drivers have to be mindful of safety at all times.
It is not just drink driving that causes crashes but speeding, inattention and carelessness.
Words cannot describe the unbearable loss faced by so many families as a result of unsafe driving.
At this time, we should think about those who have been lost on our roads this year and the pain of those they have left behind - and resolve to drive safely on every journey.
