Common DUI device needs to be implemented for all
While the number of drunk driving fatalities has fallen below 10,000, the number remains unacceptably high. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, drunk driving cost the United States and estimated $132 billion in 2010.
These figures are only related to driving on the road and do not take into account incidents involved in boating and flying under the influence. It is clear that a majority of people are not responsible enough to simply not drink and drive, but the answer to this issue doesn’t rest within the drivers themselves, but in the vehicles.
The tool is called an Ignition Interlock Device. It is a compact device about the size of a TV remote control attached to the dashboard and it’s function is simple; the driver blows into a tube and the device calculates the person’s blood alcohol content (BAC), and if that number registers above a set amount then the vehicle will not start. These tools are used as punishment for people who have been convicted of a DUI, but it would be much better suited if they were installed in every car, boat and plane before any individual puts their’s and other’s lives in danger.
Opponents might ask, “What if the driver gets a sober person to blow into the device for them?” The answer to this type of infraction is in increasing the severity of punishment for all involved in breaking drinking and driving laws.
Hopefully, with use of technology such the Ignition Interlock Device, it’ll keep us all just a little bit safer.