Brazil recently passed a law that increased the penalty for drinking and driving and also lowers the acceptable legal limit of consumption. This law is quite similar to laws in the United States and in Europe and at a time when they are emerging as a strong economic force in the world economy, their efforts to keep pace in the legal realm should do nothing but help their progress.
Unfortunately, Brazil is behind in social services. Particularly, I would like to talk about public transit. In most large cities, public transit functions efficiently and provides an alternative or primary mode of transport for the habitants of the metro area. This is true enough during the day but at night, the system shuts down. Brazil comes alive at night. There is so much to do and there is a very festive mood but, under the new law, 330 ml of beer is the legal limit for driving and the increased enforcement of the new law will put them behind bars. There is much to do at night and there are no legal hours of operation as in many countries so the festivities last all night.
With the new law, assuming it functions and no one drives after drinking, anyone who goes out to enjoy the nightlife will be stranded, or at the mercy of a high priced taxi. It is pretty common that the transportation of a taxi will cost you more than you will make at work for the day, or more than your bill for your drinks when going out.
The new law is a good step for Brazil but it is a step that should have been proceeded by improved transit. For this, I believe the entire system needs to be scrapped and built from the bottom up. In Belo Horizonte, a bus will pass every part of town except where you need to go and then you will have to walk. In addition to irrational routes, there is not a reliable timetable and there is rarely a plaque telling what bus may or may not stop at any particular bus stop. And as for a map of the lines, let me know if you find one.