According to 2010 alcohol-related traffic fatality data released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), more than 70% of deaths in crashes involving drunk drivers involved a driver with a BAC of 0.15 or higher. The legal limit in all 50 U.S. states is 0.08 BAC.
In an article in Business Week, NHTSA head David Strickland says the issue underscores the importance of ignition interlock technology for first-time DUI offenders, preventing those over a .08 (and sometimes set lower) from driving, thus reducing traffic fatalities.
An earlier post in Sobering Up discussed recent research that shows interlocks have the potential to make long-term behavior change in first-time DUI offenders. Interlocks can go a long way toward helping people learn how much they can consume before reaching 0.08 BAC.
Do you think interlocks would help reduce fatalities in this 0.015 BAC and above group?
NHTSA studies are whack