The number of people caught driving with an excess alcohol level went up more sharply in smaller towns and villages than in cities last year, according to transport ministry figures quoted in the AD. Police checks found that 2.9% of drivers in places with fewer than 50,000 residents were driving under the influence of alcohol last year, up nearly one percentage point on 2005.

Nationwide, 3% of drivers stopped by police last year had drunk too much, up just 0.2 of a percentage point on the 2005 figure. The most drivers (4.5%) were caught in the provicne of Zuid-Holland, which includes Rotterdam.
Some eight out of 10 drunk drivers are male, most are aged 25 to 34, and have been out on the town, the figures show.
Alcohol-related accidents cost society €1.6bn in 2005, the transport ministry said.