January 14, 2020 • 7 mins
The technology already exists to put Breathalyzers in cars to prevent drunk driving, and some lawmakers are working towards mandating it. Learn how it might work in this episode of BrainStuff.
Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.com
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey
brain Stuff, Lauren vog Obam. Here in the United States alone,
thirty people die every day in drunk driving related crashes.
That equates to one person every forty eight minutes. But
simple technology to prevent and even possibly end drunk driving exists,
(00:23):
So why aren't carmakers required to implement it? New legislation
in the United States aims to do just that, to
require all new cars be equipped with alcohol detection systems
by four The Reduced Impaired Driving for Everyone Act of
twenty nineteen, known as the RIDE Act, was introduced to
Congress from both sides of the aisle by Senators Tom
(00:44):
you do All of New Mexico and Rick Scott of Florida,
who co sponsored the Senate bill, and Representative Debbie Dingle
of Michigan in the House. Democrats and Republicans working together,
the lawmakers believe the law could save seven thousand lives
per year. We spoke by email with net Adrian's Senator
Utall's communications director. He said, you all saw the success
(01:05):
that Ignition interlocked technology had in reducing the number of
alcohol related driving fatalities in New Mexico and sees alcohol
detection technology as a big part of the solution in
preventing drunk drivers from getting behind the wheel. The Ride
Act doesn't just call for automakers to implement alcohol detection
technology on their own. The bill also provides funding for
research and development of advanced alcohol detection software. The legislation
(01:29):
will establish a pilot program of fleet vehicles equipped with
the software, including those from federal, state, and private partners.
That means the technology will be tested on vehicles before
being mandated for consumers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
or n h t s A, is also partnering with
automobile manufacturers to help develop alcohol detection systems that can
(01:50):
be installed in vehicles. The n h t s A
will work with the private Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety,
as well as directly with vehicle manufacturers, suppliers, and other
stood parties, including institutions of higher education with expertise and
automotive engineering, to develop the technology. Once the pilot program
is underway, results will initially be evaluated in the first
(02:12):
twelve months and again every eight days. The target for
implementing the federally mandated technology and all new vehicles will
be no more than two years after the law is enacted.
As for how it will actually work, we can get
some insight from current technology, though that doesn't necessarily reflect
the future. An ignition interlock device or I i D
(02:33):
is essentially a breathalyzer connected to a car's ignition system.
Once it's installed, the car won't start until someone breathes
into the I i D with an alcohol free breath.
Drivers also can't disconnect the devices without damaging the vehicle.
It's possible for a driver to trick these devices by
having someone else provide the breath sample, but the devices
(02:54):
also demand rolling samples at regular intervals while the vehicle
is in motion, making it difficult for anyone other than
the driver to comply, and the statistics show that they work.
In May of twenty nineteen, Mothers Against a Drunk Driving
announced that in car breathalyzers stopped drivers who were drunk
from starting their cars more than three million times since
(03:14):
two thousand six, that's when MAD began pushing for ignition
interlocks for every drunk driver. MAD collected its data from
eleven ignition interlock manufacturers. The data found that I I
d s stopped almost three forty eight thousand attempts by
drivers with alcohol in their system in twenty eighteen alone.
Life Saver, a provider of interlock devices and services, says
(03:36):
on its website that false positives are possible, though triggered
by anything from mouthwash to fruit juice to pizza dough.
In that case, a series of lockout periods are triggered
before the driver can take another test, anywhere from five
minutes on up, depending on the laws of the state.
If a rolling sample triggers a failure, the vehicle must
be stopped as soon as possible to pull over safely,
(03:58):
and a failure on a subsequent test after a lockout
period puts the vehicle in a service mode, where it
must be taken to a service center to be reset.
It's unclear whether the laws for federally mandated built in
devices would use similar procedures. The Ride Act bill does
state that the technology will automatically use the blood alcohol
content cut off for the jurisdiction where the vehicle is
(04:20):
being operated. However, the bill does not specify whether the
development team is working with existing technology or what form
the implementation will take. Also, who would pay for all
of this? Generally, when drivers are required to install an
aftermarket I I D after a d U I. They
pay the costs for installation, monthly fees for the court
(04:41):
mandated monitoring period, and the removal fee at the end
of their sentence. These costs can easily add up to
thousands of dollars, which is not necessarily representative of the
cost of the I I D itself. Since there are
different suppliers of these I I D s in different areas,
prices can vary, and Furthermore, the monthly fee also includes
a monitoring service that records the results of each test
(05:03):
to report back to the court if necessary. A Lifesaver
says their pricing is bound by the laws of the
states in which they provide their services. It's unclear how
or if the cost of these devices would be passed
on to consumers if they become mandated as part of
car equipment, though the text of udall in Scott's proposal
specifies that federal funding will help pay for the development costs.
(05:26):
The federal government has already dedicated about fifty million dollars
to the project. Adrian said some in the industry raised
cost as an objection to other landmark safety requirements like seatbelts, airbags,
and backup cameras. But Senator Udall believes that years of
federally funded research have prepared this technology to be integrated
into mass commercialization in the coming years. While the cost
(05:48):
projections are still developing, Senator Udall believes that widespread development
in new cars can be done in an affordable way.
For now, the proposed legislation is focused on providing resources
for development, with details on implementation to follow Adrian's explained
at the moment. The Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety Program,
which is partially funded by the n h T s A,
(06:10):
has developed technology that can detect alcohol and the driver's
breath that they are testing in Virginia and Maryland. Engineers
are also developing devices to detect the blood alcohol level
of the driver using touch sensors. Volvo has announced that
it will be installing cameras in cars to detect if
a driver is drunk or distracted, and Senator you'd All
hopes that the spirit of this completely voluntary initiative demonstrated
(06:32):
by Volvo will set the standard for automakers selling cars
in the United States. Today's episode was written by Trees
three Wit and produced by Tyler Playing brain Stuff is
production of I Heart Radios How Stuff Works. For more
in this and lots of other topics, visit our home
planet how stuff Works dot com. And for more podcasts
(06:53):
from my heart Radio, visit the heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,
Welcome to brain Stuff production of I Heart Radio. Hey
brain Stuff, Lauren vog Obam. Here in the United States alone,
thirty people die every day in drunk driving related crashes.
That equates to one person every forty eight minutes. But
simple technology to prevent and even possibly end drunk driving exists,
(00:23):
So why aren't carmakers required to implement it? New legislation
in the United States aims to do just that, to
require all new cars be equipped with alcohol detection systems
by four The Reduced Impaired Driving for Everyone Act of
twenty nineteen, known as the RIDE Act, was introduced to
Congress from both sides of the aisle by Senators Tom
(00:44):
you do All of New Mexico and Rick Scott of Florida,
who co sponsored the Senate bill, and Representative Debbie Dingle
of Michigan in the House. Democrats and Republicans working together,
the lawmakers believe the law could save seven thousand lives
per year. We spoke by email with net Adrian's Senator
Utall's communications director. He said, you all saw the success
(01:05):
that Ignition interlocked technology had in reducing the number of
alcohol related driving fatalities in New Mexico and sees alcohol
detection technology as a big part of the solution in
preventing drunk drivers from getting behind the wheel. The Ride
Act doesn't just call for automakers to implement alcohol detection
technology on their own. The bill also provides funding for
research and development of advanced alcohol detection software. The legislation
(01:29):
will establish a pilot program of fleet vehicles equipped with
the software, including those from federal, state, and private partners.
That means the technology will be tested on vehicles before
being mandated for consumers. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration,
or n h t s A, is also partnering with
automobile manufacturers to help develop alcohol detection systems that can
(01:50):
be installed in vehicles. The n h t s A
will work with the private Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety,
as well as directly with vehicle manufacturers, suppliers, and other
stood parties, including institutions of higher education with expertise and
automotive engineering, to develop the technology. Once the pilot program
is underway, results will initially be evaluated in the first
(02:12):
twelve months and again every eight days. The target for
implementing the federally mandated technology and all new vehicles will
be no more than two years after the law is enacted.
As for how it will actually work, we can get
some insight from current technology, though that doesn't necessarily reflect
the future. An ignition interlock device or I i D
(02:33):
is essentially a breathalyzer connected to a car's ignition system.
Once it's installed, the car won't start until someone breathes
into the I i D with an alcohol free breath.
Drivers also can't disconnect the devices without damaging the vehicle.
It's possible for a driver to trick these devices by
having someone else provide the breath sample, but the devices
(02:54):
also demand rolling samples at regular intervals while the vehicle
is in motion, making it difficult for anyone other than
the driver to comply, and the statistics show that they work.
In May of twenty nineteen, Mothers Against a Drunk Driving
announced that in car breathalyzers stopped drivers who were drunk
from starting their cars more than three million times since
(03:14):
two thousand six, that's when MAD began pushing for ignition
interlocks for every drunk driver. MAD collected its data from
eleven ignition interlock manufacturers. The data found that I I
d s stopped almost three forty eight thousand attempts by
drivers with alcohol in their system in twenty eighteen alone.
Life Saver, a provider of interlock devices and services, says
(03:36):
on its website that false positives are possible, though triggered
by anything from mouthwash to fruit juice to pizza dough.
In that case, a series of lockout periods are triggered
before the driver can take another test, anywhere from five
minutes on up, depending on the laws of the state.
If a rolling sample triggers a failure, the vehicle must
be stopped as soon as possible to pull over safely,
(03:58):
and a failure on a subsequent test after a lockout
period puts the vehicle in a service mode, where it
must be taken to a service center to be reset.
It's unclear whether the laws for federally mandated built in
devices would use similar procedures. The Ride Act bill does
state that the technology will automatically use the blood alcohol
content cut off for the jurisdiction where the vehicle is
(04:20):
being operated. However, the bill does not specify whether the
development team is working with existing technology or what form
the implementation will take. Also, who would pay for all
of this? Generally, when drivers are required to install an
aftermarket I I D after a d U I. They
pay the costs for installation, monthly fees for the court
(04:41):
mandated monitoring period, and the removal fee at the end
of their sentence. These costs can easily add up to
thousands of dollars, which is not necessarily representative of the
cost of the I I D itself. Since there are
different suppliers of these I I D s in different areas,
prices can vary, and Furthermore, the monthly fee also includes
a monitoring service that records the results of each test
(05:03):
to report back to the court if necessary. A Lifesaver
says their pricing is bound by the laws of the
states in which they provide their services. It's unclear how
or if the cost of these devices would be passed
on to consumers if they become mandated as part of
car equipment, though the text of udall in Scott's proposal
specifies that federal funding will help pay for the development costs.
(05:26):
The federal government has already dedicated about fifty million dollars
to the project. Adrian said some in the industry raised
cost as an objection to other landmark safety requirements like seatbelts, airbags,
and backup cameras. But Senator Udall believes that years of
federally funded research have prepared this technology to be integrated
into mass commercialization in the coming years. While the cost
(05:48):
projections are still developing, Senator Udall believes that widespread development
in new cars can be done in an affordable way.
For now, the proposed legislation is focused on providing resources
for development, with details on implementation to follow Adrian's explained
at the moment. The Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety Program,
which is partially funded by the n h T s A,
(06:10):
has developed technology that can detect alcohol and the driver's
breath that they are testing in Virginia and Maryland. Engineers
are also developing devices to detect the blood alcohol level
of the driver using touch sensors. Volvo has announced that
it will be installing cameras in cars to detect if
a driver is drunk or distracted, and Senator you'd All
hopes that the spirit of this completely voluntary initiative demonstrated
(06:32):
by Volvo will set the standard for automakers selling cars
in the United States. Today's episode was written by Trees
three Wit and produced by Tyler Playing brain Stuff is
production of I Heart Radios How Stuff Works. For more
in this and lots of other topics, visit our home
planet how stuff Works dot com. And for more podcasts
(06:53):
from my heart Radio, visit the heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,
or wherever you listen to your favorite shows,
BrainStuff News
Hosts And Creators
Josh Clark
Jonathan Strickland
Ben Bowlin
Lauren Vogelbaum
Cristen Conger
Christian Sager
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations.
Death, Sex & Money
Anna Sale explores the big questions and hard choices that are often left out of polite conversation.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.