[Congressional Record Volume 156, Number 25 (Thursday, February 25, 2010)]
[Senate]
[Pages S797-S798]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
By Mr. UDALL, of New Mexico (for himself and Mr. Corker):
S. 3039. A bill to prevent drunk driving injuries and fatalities, and
for other purposes; to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and
Transportation.
Mr. UDALL of New Mexico. Mr. President, I rise to introduce the ROADS
SAFE Act of 2010. I am pleased to be joined in introducing this
legislation by my colleague, the Senator from Tennessee, Mr. Bob
Corker.
This legislation will encourage the development of new tools to fight
drunk driving and has the potential to save 8,000 lives every year.
Tragic drunk driving crashes often prompt communities to do more to
prevent drunk driving. This was the case in my home State of New Mexico
back in 1992, when a drunk driver killed a mother and her three girls
on Christmas Eve. He was speeding down the highway 90 miles an hour,
going the wrong way down an interstate highway. This crash helped
change attitudes in my State. But it should not take a tragedy for us
to do more to prevent drunk driving.
In 2008, drunk driving killed about 12,000 Americans, including 143
people in New Mexico. That is an average of 32 people killed every day
by drunk driving. This unacceptable death toll is all the more shocking
when you consider that each one of those deaths was preventable.
The United States has already made significant progress. Compared to
20 years ago, our roads are much safer today. Yet even as the overall
number of people killed on our highways has
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declined, drunk driving still accounts for about one-third of all
traffic fatalities.
It is even more worrisome that a drunk driver has just a 2-percent
chance of being caught. In fact, one study found that a first-time
drunk driving offender has, on average, driven drunk 87 times before
being arrested. Imagine, 87 times. This is unacceptable. Something must
be done to prevent these drivers from getting on the road in the first
place.
The good news is, there are potential technologies out there that
could do that. That is why Senator Corker and I are introducing the
ROADS SAFE Act today. New safety technology has already transformed the
automobile and saved countless lives. For example, airbags and antilock
brakes are now standard features in many vehicles. These safety devices
are built into the car and are unobtrusive to the driver. Such
technologies are an important reason we have fewer traffic fatalities
today.
Imagine a future with vehicles that could detect whether a driver is
drunk when he or she gets behind the wheel--before he or she even
starts their vehicle. That would be no drunk driving crashes if it were
impossible for drunk drivers to drive. If such technology were widely
deployed in cars, an estimated 8,000 lives could be saved every year.
I realize many may think this is a farfetched idea. Yet consider that
vehicles today can already give driving directions, thanks to GPS
satellite navigation devices. Some cars can even parallel park
themselves. New Mexico and other States require convicted drunk drivers
to use an ignition interlock, a breathalyzer device they blow into
before their vehicle's engine will start. The success of ignition
interlocks for preventing repeat drunk driving offenses suggests a
better technology could be used to prevent all drunk driving.
In 2006, Mothers Against Drunk Driving convened an international
technology symposium in Albuquerque, NM. The goal of the meeting was to
review efforts to develop advanced ignition interlocks technology.
In 2008, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration partnered
with leading automakers to explore the feasibility of in-vehicle
technologies to prevent drunk driving. The recent progress of this
cooperative effort fuels optimism that such technology could be
deployed within 5 to 10 years.
Clearly, such advanced technologies must win widespread public
acceptance in order to be effective. They must be moderately priced,
absolutely reliable, and unobtrusive to sober drivers.
The aim is to stop drunk driving, not discourage responsible social
drinking. A recent Insurance Institute for Highway Safety poll found
that 64 percent of Americans believe advanced alcohol detection
technology is a good idea and that it is reliable.
What would the ROADS SAFE Act do? This legislation would authorize
$12 million in annual funding for 5 years for the Driver Alcohol
Detection System for Safety Program, also known as DADSS.
DADSS is a public-private partnership between NHTSA and the
Automobile Coalition for Traffic Safety. The goal is to explore the
feasibility, potential benefits, and public policy challenges
associated with using in-
vehicle technology to prevent drunk driving.
This increased Federal funding to combat drunk driving is a smart
investment in public safety. Drunk driving has direct and indirect
economic costs in terms of damaged property, medical bills, and lost
productivity. In economic terms, drunk driving costs $129 billion per
year. Of course, such monetary costs cannot be compared to the value of
saving 8,000 lives every year.
Several organizations dedicated to fighting drunk driving already
support this bipartisan proposal. Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the
Century Council, and the Distilled Spirits Council all support the
ROADS SAFE Act.
I urge my Senate colleagues to join me, Senator Corker, and these
important organizations in the fight against drunk driving by
supporting the ROADS SAFE Act. We have made much progress in our
efforts to prevent drunk driving, but there is so much more to be done.
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