New figures out today show a significant decline in drink driving enforcement levels by Gardaí.

The statistics show a 12.7% drop in the number of motorists found over the legal alcohol limit in 2015 to 6,794 from 7,697 – a fall of 903.

The numbers, reported by The Irish Examiner, also showed that the amount of people breathalyzed last year at the side of the road fell to 327,450 in 2015 from 397,513 in 2014 – a decline of nearly 18%.

Liz O’Donnell, Chair of the Road Safety Authority, says breath testing is a necessary deterrent.

Ms O’Donnell said: “We believe that there is a direct link between enforcement and compliance with drink-driving laws.

“We really need a high visibility presence of Gardaí on the roads, accompanied by the fear of enforcement and that’s the single biggest factor in changing people’s behaviour.”