Could all autos soon have breathalyzers?

[ECH1969]

Could the day be coming when every driver is checked for drinking before starting a car?

Widespread use of ignition interlock devices that won't allow a car to be started if a driver has had too much alcohol, once considered radical, no longer seems out of the question. Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) gives a qualified endorsement to the idea. New York state legislators are considering requiring the devices on all cars and trucks by 2009. And automakers, already close to offering the devices as optional equipment on all Volvo and Saab models in Sweden, are considering whether to bring the technology here.

Manufacturers are perfecting technology that could detect alcohol on the skin surface, eliminating the need for the current, cumbersome, blow-into-a-tube breath-analyzing systems. Current breathalyzers cost about $1,000. The newer systems are expected to cost about the same.

MADD and others trying to reduce the 17,000 alcohol-related fatalities a year say ignition interlocks are the only sure way to separate potential drunken drivers from their "weapons."

http://www.usatoday.com/money/autos/2006-04-24-breathalyzer-usat_x.htm

[SnoopDog]

1. All I know is that drinking and driving is absolutely disgusting...

There is no excuse for getting in a car and driving after drinking....

[niyad]

2. the police state is here, and the little sheeples are just rollling over

because this sounds like a good thing.
for the record, sleep deprivation is a cause of more accidents than alcohol.

[pnwmom]

4. It's not the police state, it's the Mommy State. And as a mom, I'll say

it's awfully tempting.

[mark11727]

6. Too bad we can't just test for BOTH (drunk and/or tired)...

...just hardwire a SIMON onto the steering wheel.

[pitohui]

7. and how are working people to get home?

the drunk driving thing is one thing but you bring in -- and i've heard increasing calls for this -- tired driving

after a full day of work a person is tired, esp. when they're older

a friend of mine was killed, perfectly sober, driving home from work when she fell asleep at the wheel so this issue is close to me -- i know being tired kills, i also know that not allowing that lady to hold a job and work would not have improved her life one tiny bit

i was rear-ended in broad daylight by a nice lady coming home from work at a hospital, who admitted she was just tired and didn't see me

should we criminalize these people?

should only people of leisure who never have to go home or anywhere else when they are tired be allowed to operate a vehicle w.out risk of jail or financial ruin?

what's wrong w. our society that we make it criminal offense to have an accident?

if i thought the cries abt "tired driving" were abt anything except criminalizing being tired for greater profit for the courts who collect the court costs and the prisons which are now run for profit, maybe i would have a different opinion

in mexico it is a criminal offense to be involved in an auto accident and you are jailed until you can pay off whoever even if you were perfectly sober at the time!

why don't we just do it like that and be done w. it? seems to be what a lot of people want

jeebus people

sorry, i don't mean to rant at you, you are likely well intentioned, but this whole let us hate on the tired driver campaign is a direct attack on working people

[mark11727]

10. Actually, my post was in response to niyad...

...who seemed to be equating drunk driving (which is already criminalized) with tired driving (which isn't criminalized, nor should it be).

The SIMON reference was a JOKE, since a pile of posters here went all 1984 at the thought of built-in breathalysers --- OF COURSE people who've worked a full day (and longer, my day hardly ends at the end of the business day, in fact my damn business day doesn't end at the end of the business day!)

IMHO, here's the difference:

TIRED = end of a long day or a long drive - can't be helped and shouldn't be criminalized.

DRUNK = nobody's forced the driver to knock back a few cold ones (or shots, whatever) - can entirely be helped and should indeed be criminalized.

BTW, I've been a designated driver on more than a few occasions... I like it better that way, since I'm not much of a drinker anyway, and the rest of your group is fun to watch.

[TahitiNut]

3. Sure. "Breath into this, little girl."

:eyes: Just what we need - drunk drivers with kids in the car.

[Ayesha]

5. Scary

What next, a test to see if you're using a cell phone, applying makeup, or any of the other boneheaded things people do while driving?

Drinking and driving is horrible, but there is such a thing as personal responsibility.

Also, breathalyzers aren't all that reliable. This could result in people being unable to drive after doing things like using mouthwash.

It's a stupid and frightening idea.

[REP]

8. Maybe For Those with DUI Convictions

But for everyone? Bad idea.

[Solon]

9. Exactly, a condition for extended parole or probation...

pretty simple, they have their own car, wire it up with a breathalyzer, seems simple enough and already practiced in some areas. However, trying to install such devices universally is just stupid and a waste of time and money. The more prolific they are, the more likely people will find ways around them, that's the weak point in any type of lockdown system.