The March issue of Men’s Health magazine will contain a ranking of “America’s Drunkest Cities,” and coming in at No. 15 is Madison, Wisconsin with a grade of D-.
One hundred cities across the nation were graded and assigned a rating based on a variety of factors including alcohol-related crash fatalities, binge-drinking and liver disease rates.
“I would say Wisconsin has a deep history of drinking, and not just Madison and the school here in particular, but the whole state,” University of Wisconsin student and Alcohol License Review Committee member Mark Woulf said.
Woulf added that based on the rating criteria, Madison’s rank is more of a checkpoint as to where we stand in terms of enforcement and health statistics rather than as a status symbol to flaunt.
Topping the list is Fresno, California, followed by Reno Nevada, both with a grade of F. The only other Wisconsin city to appear on the list was Milwaukee, at 58 with a grade of C.
“The campus and students in particular have been part of a tradition where they both work hard and party hard, but in general are quite responsible,” ALRC member Ald. Mike Verveer, District 4 said.
On the opposite end is Boston, MA, with a grade of A+.
The specific criteria for the rating system was based on death rates of alcoholic liver disease provided by the Centers for Disease Control, fatalities from alcohol-related car crashes, arrests from driving under the influence, severity of DUI laws and number of people who have openly admitted to binge-drinking.
“I think drinking is part of our culture. There are many who drink responsibly; we may not have the same impression of heavy-drinkers as other states do,” Woulf said. “As far as Madison goes… it is part of that culture, it’s part of what you go through as a college student.”
According to the Wisconsin Department of Transportation, 234 people were killed in Wisconsin in 2008 as a result of alcohol-related crashes. This figure amounts to approximately 40 percent of all Wisconsin crashes resulting in fatalities in that year.
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety details some of the stipulations with respect to Wisconsin’s drunken driving laws.
Wisconsin drivers have their licenses suspended for six months upon the first offense. The driver may also have an interlock device installed that requires the driver to blow into a breathalyzer-like device before the car starts or may even have the vehicle forfeited.
Figures from University Health Services’ PACE Project show that rates of binge-drinking in Wisconsin have been consistently high. The rate among adults is the highest in the nation; among college students, Wisconsin is behind only one state, Maryland.
Woulf said Madison’s position on the list with regard to binge drinking may be inflated in part due to the very definition of binge-drinking. The CDC defines binge drinking as “five or more drinks on a single occasion for men, or four or more drinks on a single occasion for women, generally within about two hours.”
