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Zero tolerance (ZT) laws have been effective in reducing alcohol-related crashes among underage drivers. However, enforcement in some states has not been rigorous, and ZT offenses may not be viewed as serious offenses. On July 1, 1994, the state of Washington implemented a ZT law that allowed police to request a test for alcohol on suspicion of either a ZT or driving-under-the-influence (DUI) offense. The present study examined effects of the ZT law on arrests and case dispositions among underage offenders as a function of blood alcohol concentration (BAC) and post-law patterns of recidivism.Times-series analyses examined the effects of the ZT law on trends in arrests of underage drivers between 1991 and 1999. Based on arrest records matched with driver's license records, the effects of the law on dispositions of alcohol-related offenses among underage drivers were examined, and rates of recidivism among underage offenders were examined for the period following the ZT law.There was a substantial increase in arrests of underage drivers beginning immediately after implementation of the ZT law, especially among drivers with low BACs. The types of court or administrative dispositions received by underage offenders changed markedly after the ZT law was implemented. Underage offenders with lower BACs became far more likely to receive alcohol-related convictions and/or license suspensions. However, the percentage of underage offenders with higher BACs receiving DUI convictions declined as some of these offenders received the lesser ZT disposition. After the ZT law, underage offenders with BACs of 0.10 g/dL or higher were more likely to recidivate than those with lower BACs, but appreciable proportions of drivers were re-arrested for another alcohol offense, whatever the BAC and however they were penalized.Implementation of Washington's law indicates that a ZT law can increase the likelihood that an underage person will be sanctioned for drinking and driving. However, recidivism remains an issue as more than one in four underage drivers arrested with low BACs subsequently were re-arrested.

Portal survey techniques involve multimodal assessments (e.g., self-report, biologic, and observational) in high-risk drinking and drug-use settings. Our investigation expanded the portal survey methodology to include follow-up assessments of emerging adult women recruited at the border as they cross to and from Mexico south of San Diego, California. The feasibility of the follow-up procedure was established, and the limitations of the technique clarified. Follow-up participants and nonparticipants did not differ by age or reported victimization. Data indicated that 8% of women experience negative events on their return to the United States after a night of binge drinking. These experiences could only be captured in a follow-up survey, as they happened after participants left the border area.

A common method of normalizing crash fatality data for comparing subgroups of drivers has been the estimated vehicle miles traveled (VMT). Unfortunately, the VMT method fails to provide for exposure to risks such as those related to alcohol consumption (among others). Recently, the "crash incidence ratio" (CIR) has been introduced to address some of these limitations. The goals of this study are first, to show that the CIR method is intrinsically similar to an increasingly popular quasi-induced method: the relative accident involvement ratio (RAIR); second, to compare the VMT-based, the CIR, and the RAIR methods when applied to the evaluation of alcohol-related crash fatalities across racial/ethnic groups.We use the 1990-1996 Fatal Accident Reporting System (FARS) with information on the drivers' race/ethnicity and alcohol involvement (BAC). Descriptive and statistical ratio tests were applied.The RAIR and CIR are indeed closely related measures that, when used for comparisons against a reference group, yield exactly the same numerical estimates. Strikingly different outcomes were obtained depending on using the VMT or the CIR/RAIR.Choosing one measure over another should depend on the questions to be answered. The implication of this finding for researchers and policy makers is discussed.

To determine whether DUI offenders can better avoid future drinking and driving by controlling their vehicle usage rather than by controlling their drinking.Using a randomized experimental post-test only design, 9,571 first-time DUI offenders were randomly assigned to receive one of two 12-hour educational programs: a traditional DUI curriculum or the PARC (Preventing Alcohol-Related Convictions) curriculum, which uses a novel theoretical approach to preventing DUI recidivism. Whereas traditional programs focus on participants controlling their drinking to avoid future drinking and driving, the PARC curriculum focuses on participants controlling their driving. Instead of trying to control alcohol consumption after driving to a drinking venue (previously found to be a flawed strategy), PARC teaches students to make a decision before leaving home not to drive to a drinking event, thus greatly limiting the possibility of drinking and driving. Driving records were obtained from the Florida Department of Motor Vehicles using driver's license numbers to assess DUI recidivism rates among the students in the PARC and Traditional curricula for the first year following program participation and again at 2 years post-intervention.Binary logistic regression analyses revealed that offenders receiving the PARC curriculum exhibited significantly lower 1-year and 2-year recidivism rates than those receiving the Traditional curriculum. The effect was consistent across two different measures of recidivism, and across gender, race, ethnicity, and location.Results suggest that the PARC educational approach may be more effective than the traditional approach in reducing DUI recidivism.

Objective The current study examines the variation in alcohol use among nightclub patrons under three transportation conditions: those who departed from a club using modes of transportation other than cars or motorcycles (e.g., pedestrians, bicyclists, subway riders); those who were passengers of drivers (auto/taxi passenger patrons); and those who drove from the club (driving patrons). We seek to determine whether patrons’ choice for how to leave the club contributes to their risk, as assessed by blood alcohol concentrations (BAC), after controlling for other factors that may contribute to their BAC including demographic characteristics and social drinking group influences. Methods Data were collected from social drinking groups as they entered and exited clubs for 71 different evenings at ten clubs from 2010 through 2012. Using portal methodology, a research site was established proximal to club entrances. Each individual participant provided data on themselves and others in their group. The present analyses are based upon 1833 individuals who completed both entrance and exit data. Our outcome variable is blood alcohol content (BAC) based upon breath tests attained from patrons at entrance and exit from the club. Independent variables include method of transportation, social group characteristics, drug use, and personal characteristics. We use step-wise multiple regressions to predict entrance BAC, change in BAC from entrance to exit, and exit BAC: first entering individual demographic characteristics, then entering group characteristics, then drug use, and finally entering method of transportation (two dummy coded variables such that drivers are the referent category). Results In sum, in all three of our analyses, only three variables are consistently predictive of BAC: presence of a group member who is frequently drunk and non-driving modes of transportation, either being the passenger or taking alternate methods of transportation. In particular, taking an alternate form of transportation was consistently and strongly predictive of higher BAC. Conclusions Additional public health messages are needed to address patrons who are no longer drinking and driving but who are nonetheless engaged in high levels of drinking that may lead to various risky outcomes, for example: being targeted for physical and/or sexual assault, pedestrian accidents, and other adverse consequences. These risks are not addressed by the focus on drinking and driving. Key messages appropriate for patrons who use alternate transportation might include devising a safety plan before entering the club and a focus on sobering up before leaving.

The object of this study was to estimate the relative contribution of various classes of drinkers (including those with alcohol-use disorders) to alcohol-related fatal motor vehicle crashes.Using the National Epidemiologic Survey on Alcohol and Related Conditions conducted in 2000, the percentage of state residents falling into six nonoverlapping alcohol-user categories-dependent drinkers, abusive drinkers, dependent and abusive drinkers, heavy episodic drinkers, current normative drinkers, and current nondrinkers- was determined based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fourth Edition, classifications. The percentage of residents in each state in each of these user categories and their relationships to the number of drinking drivers involved in fatal crashes in that state were determined through regression analysis using data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System.The proportion of drinkers in a state in each of the six consumption categories was positively related to the number of drinking drivers in fatal crashes in that state. Conversely, the percentage of the state's population who were current nondrinkers was negatively related to the number of drinking road users in crashes.Although alcohol abusive and heavy episodic drinkers had substantially higher associations with impaired drivers in fatal crashes, half of such drivers were associated with the percentage of current nominative drinkers in the state. Despite the relevancy of these findings, they must be qualified by statistical limitations associated with the use of state as the unit of analysis.

This paper investigates the role of race/ethnicity, language skills (a proxy for acculturation among Hispanics in Arizona, California, New Mexico, and Texas), income, and education level on alcohol-related fatal motor vehicle crashes. Using the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), we confirmed previous state-based studies showing that high income and education levels have a protective influence on alcohol-related fatal motor vehicle crashes. We also confirmed that language proficiency/acculturation tends to increase the vulnerability of Hispanic women to alcohol-related fatalities. Differences in alcohol-related fatality rates across Hispanic subgroups are observed. Future reductions in alcohol-related traffic fatalities may require prevention policies that take into account existent variations in acculturation, income, and education among racial/ethnic groups and subgroups.

Alcohol use is highly prevalent among U.S. college students, and alcohol-related problems are often considered the most serious public health threat on American college campuses. Although empirical examinations of college drinking have relied primarily on self-report measures, several investigators have implemented field studies to obtain objective measures of alcohol consumption (blood alcohol concentration) from students in ecologically valid settings. This article describes the methodology of breath-test field survey that is being conducted on the grounds of San Diego State University. Descriptive summaries of the data collected through spring 2003 are provided, and limitations to methodology are discussed.

Portal surveys, defined as assessments occurring proximal to the entry point to a high-risk locale and immediately on exit, can be used in different settings to measure characteristics and behavior of attendees at an event of interest. This methodology has been developed to assess alcohol and other drug (AOD) use at specific events and has included measuring intentions to use collected at entry and reported use on exit, as well as chemical tests for AOD consumption at both entrance and exit. Recent applications of the portal survey procedure to electronic music dance events that occur in established venues (e.g., bars or nightclubs) are discussed.

This study examines environmental differences in public (bars) and private (parties) drinking settings among of-age (21 and up years of age) and underage (18-20 years of age) college students attending college near the US/Mexico border. A random telephone survey of graduate and undergraduate students attending two large public universities in the southwestern United States was conducted during the 2000-2003 academic years. A university-based social science research laboratory conducted the telephone interviews with respondents who reported an occasion in the past 28 days where alcohol was being consumed (N = 4,964). The data were analyzed using ordinary least squares multiple regression. The results suggests that drinking settings contributed to the amount of alcohol consumed by respondents. Additionally, environmental factors contributing to drinking vary by setting. In general, having many people intoxicated at an event, BYOB parties, playing drinking games, and having illicit drugs available contribute to heavier drinking.

To control underage drinking in the United States, which has been associated with an estimated 5,000 deaths and 2.6 million injuries or other harm annually, each state has developed a unique set of laws. Previous research examining these laws' effectiveness has frequently focused on the laws' existence without considering variance in sanctions, enforcement, or exemptions.We scored 20 minimum legal drinking age 21 (MLDA-21) laws for their strengths and weaknesses based on (i) sanctions for violating the law, (ii) exceptions or exemptions affecting application, and (iii) provisions affecting the law or enforcement. We then replicated a 2009 study of the effects of 6 MLDA-21 laws in 3 different ways (using identical structural equation modeling): Study 1-8 additional years of data, no law strengths; Study 2-years from the original study, added law strengths; Study 3-additional years, law strengths, serving as an update of the 6 laws' effects.In all 3 studies-and the original study-keg registration laws were associated with both an unexpected significant increase (+11%, p0.001) in underage drinking-driver ratios and a notable 25% reduction in per capita beer consumption-opposing results that are difficult to explain. In Study 3, possession and purchase laws were associated with a significant decrease in underage drinking-driver fatal crash ratios (-4.9%, p0.001; -3.6%, p0.001, respectively). Similarly, zero tolerance and use and lose laws were associated with reductions in underage drinking-driver ratios (-2.8%, p0.001; -5.3%, p0.001, respectively).Including strengths and weaknesses of underage drinking laws is important when examining their effects on various outcomes as the model fit statistics indicated. We suggest that this will result in more accurate and more reliable estimates of the impact of the laws on various outcome measures.

Alcohol has been associated with traffic crashes for more than 100 years, as indicated by the publication of the first scientific report on the effect of drinking by operators of “motorized wagons” in 1904. This chapter presents an overview of the status of policies and programs designed to reduce highway crashes involving alcohol-impaired drivers. Alcohol safety programs are reviewed under three headings: primary prevention, secondary prevention, and tertiary prevention. Primary prevention covers programs directed at reducing the high-risk drinking that leads to impaired driving, including programs directed at preventing drinking by youths aged 20 and younger and at preventing service to obviously intoxicated individuals. Secondary prevention covers programs directed at separating drinking from driving through law enforcement, public information programs, and driver licensing regulations. Finally, tertiary prevention focuses on programs directed at preventing identified drinking drivers from future impaired driving through license sanctions, vehicle actions, treatment programs, and monitoring systems.

This paper investigates the role that acculturation, income, and education play in safety belt nonuse among Californian drivers involved in fatal Motor Vehicle Crashes (MVCs). To achieve this goal, measures of acculturation, income, and education were stochastically incorporated into the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS). Using the 1990 California Tobacco Survey and U.S. Census data, we estimated the combination of zip-code-based measures that most accurately predicts an individual, language-based acculturation index for Hispanics and Asians. Logistic regression was used to investigate the role of these variables in safety belt nonuse in fatal MVCs. We found that acculturation has a positive direct effect on safety belt use among Hispanics. We hypothesize that this positive direct effect is caused by Hispanic immigrants learning the benefits of wearing safety belts. However, our study also suggests an indirect negative effect of acculturation on safety belt use through drinking and driving. Prevention programs aimed at increasing the safety of Hispanic drivers not only need to take acculturation differences into account, but also need to be comprehensive in their message, simultaneously targeting both seat belt nonuse and drinking-and-driving problems.

This paper describes two studies designed to produce benchmark values with which to compare police stop data in an effort to assess racial profiling. Racial profiling is often measured by comparing the racial and ethnic distribution from police stop rates to race and ethnicity data derived from regional census counts. However, benchmarks may be more appropriate that are based on (1) the population of drivers or (2) the population of traffic violators. This research surveyed drivers on the New Jersey Turnpike and produced benchmark distributions reflecting these two populations. Benchmark values then were compared to police stops collected from State Troopers patrolling the Turnpike. The results revealed that the racial make‐up of speeders differed from that of nonspeeding drivers and closely approximated the racial composition of police stops. Specifically, the proportion of speeding drivers who were identified as Black mirrored the proportion of Black drivers stopped by police. This finding may explain t...

There is an increasing number of motor vehicle crashes (MVCs) in the U.S. that occur at intersections. Noncompliance with traffic signals is one of the causes for such increase. In this study, we focused on Hispanic drivers. It has been shown that failing to follow traffic laws and regulations is a major cause of MVCs in Latin America. Does this driving behavior in Latin America correspond to the Hispanic community in the U.S.? Are U.S. Hispanics more likely to die in a red light incident? Are Hispanics more likely to be red light runners than other racial/ethnic groups in the U.S.? We answered these questions by taking advantage of a 1990-1996 Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) file with additional racial/ethnic information. Overall, we found no differences between African-American, White, and Hispanic drivers regarding red light running. We found that drinking and driving was the most important factor for red light running. However, we found evidence that some Hispanic subgroups may be more vulnerable to red light running. One such subgroup is formed by Hispanics who have no valid driver license and no record of previous driver license suspension. This study is the first to apply national, archival data to document the relevance of race/ethnicity to the red light running problem, and we hope that it might serve as an incentive for more research on this area.

This article explores the prevalence of drug and alcohol use and related risks by attendees at electronic music dance events (EMDEs) in club settings. From six events located on the East and West Coasts, anonymous data were collected via self-report questionnaires, drug bioassays, and alcohol breath tests prior to entry (N = 240) and upon exit from the venues (N = 219). EMDEs were locations for identifying young adults who were aged 18 to 25 (70%), not college students (54%), and at risk for substance use. Nearly half of the sample (45%) were positive for drug use, and 60% were positive for alcohol use at entrance. Slightly more than one third (38%) were positive for drug use, and 59% were positive for alcohol use at exit. Only a small percentage of the sample converted from no use to drug use on premises (5.4%). Future investigations need to explore targeted substance use prevention strategies within this context.

More than a dozen studies on the effectiveness of the .08 blood alcohol concentration (BAC) laws have been published; however, those studies have varied both in the statistical methods and the type of outcome measure used, so it is difficult to integrate the findings into an overall estimate of the effectiveness of the law. This study used a consistent outcome measure, drinking drivers in fatal crashes and an identical methodology time-series analysis, to analyze the introduction of the .08 law in 18 states and the District of Columbia from 1982 to 2000. Each analysis accounted for other key safety laws (administrative license suspension/revocation and safety belt laws), as well as economic conditions that might influence the effectiveness of the .08 law. This provided 19 independent evaluations in which the effectiveness (treatment effect) of the law could be measured in the same quantitative terms. The number of drinking drivers in fatal crashes declined in 16 of the 19 jurisdictions after the .08 law was adopted. Nine of the 16 reductions were statistically significant (p < .05). The effect size combined across all 19 locations showed statistically significant decline (p < .005) of 14.8% in the rate of drinking drivers in fatal crashes after the .08 laws were introduced. The reduction was greater in states that had an administrative license suspension/revocation law and implemented frequent sobriety checkpoints. This analysis suggests that 947 lives might have been saved, had all 50 states and the District of Columbia had the .08 law throughout the year 2000.

There is substantial and consistent evidence from research that highly publicized, highly visible, and frequent sobriety checkpoints in the United States reduce impaired driving fatal crashes by 18% to 24%. Although checkpoints are not conducted in 13 states for legal or policy reasons, there is strong evidence that if conducted appropriately, checkpoints would save lives in the other states. However, a recent survey of checkpoint use has demonstrated that despite the efforts of the U.S. Department of Transportation to encourage checkpoint use through publications, providing funds for equipment, and for officer overtime expenses, only about a dozen of the 37 states that conduct checkpoints do so on a weekly basis. The survey found that lack of local police resources and funding, lack of support by task forces and citizen activists, and the perception that checkpoints are not productive or cost effective are the main reasons for their infrequent use. This article discusses each of these problems and suggests a method for local communities to implement checkpoints without depending on state or federal funds. Low-staffing sobriety checkpoints conducted by as few as three to five officers have been shown to be just as effective as checkpoints conducted by 15 or more officers. A modified sobriety checkpoint program using passive alcohol sensors ("PASpoints") can be implemented by small- to moderate-sized communities in the United States to deter impaired driving. If implemented in a majority of communities, this strategy has a potential level of effectiveness similar to the high level achieved by several Australian states in their random breath-test (RBT) programs. The PASpoint system calls for a small group of three to five officers on traffic patrol duty to converge on a preset site and conduct a mini-checkpoint, returning to their standard patrol duties within two hours. Within this framework, the PASpoint operation would become a standard driving under the influence (DUI) enforcement technique regularly used within the community's jurisdiction. As a standard traffic enforcement activity, the cost would be covered by the normal enforcement budget.

Keywords: Enforcement intensity; Fatal crashes; High visibility enforcement; Impaired driving; Sobriety checkpoints

AIMS: This report reviews breath test data captured by the alcohol ignition interlock, a device that prevents a car from starting when BAC (breath alcohol concentration) is elevated. DESIGN: The predictors were elevated BAC test rates from ignition interlock equipped cars of traffic offenders convicted of DUI (driving under the influence of alcohol) and who used interlocks for 6-18 months. Outcome data were future DUI convictions. SETTINGS: QuA©bec and Alberta, Canada. PARTICIPANTS: Approximately 10000 interlock users from these two culturally distinctive English- and French-speaking Provinces. MEASUREMENT: Predictor patterns were analyzed from among 23 million breath tests. Repeat DUI convictions accumulated up to several years after interlock removal were studied as an outcome to be predicted by the rate of BAC tests > or = 20 mg/dl (0.02%) while the interlock was installed. Data were analyzed with sensitivity and survival methods. FINDINGS: A median of eight interlock breath tests per day per driver were logged (a rate of 3000 tests/year). Less than 1% of all tests were over 0.02%, but the rate of elevated BAC tests, particularly those taken at 7-9 a.m., strongly predicts repeat DUI offenses 2 years hence. The interlock record is an unobtrusive measure of drinking behavior and can be used to profile driver risk. CONCLUSIONS: With new legal mandates, North American use of these DUI control devices is increasing rapidly from the current 5% penetration rate. Interlock data may eventually come to serve as a useful adjunct for patient monitoring by alcohol counselors as well as by courts and motor vehicle authorities.

Research has demonstrated that participation in an interlock program significantly reduces the likelihood of subsequent driving while intoxicated (DWI) convictions at least so long as the interlock device is installed in the vehicle. Despite the growing number of jurisdictions that allow interlock programs and the demonstrated success of these programs, the proportion of DWI offenders who actually have the device installed is minimal. In an effort to increase the proportion of offenders using interlocks, some jurisdictions require offenders to install an interlock as a condition of license reinstatement whereas others merely offer offenders a reduction in the period of hard suspension if they voluntarily participate in an interlock program. The objective of the present study was to determine the extent to which voluntary interlock participants are more or less successful in terms of subsequent recidivism than those for whom interlock program participation has been mandated. The issue was addressed using data from the interlock program in Alberta, Canada, which provides for both mandatory and voluntary participation. The recidivism experience of voluntary and mandatory interlock participants was examined both during and after the period of interlock installation. Cox regression revealed that, after controlling for (or equating) the number of prior DWI offenses, the survival rates of DWI offenders who were ordered to participate in the interlock program did not differ from those of voluntary participants. These results suggest that further use of mandatory interlock programs should be just as successful as voluntary programs when offenders share characteristics with those studied in Alberta.

The objective of this research was to determine the extent to which the decline in alcohol-related highway deaths among drivers younger than age 21 years can be attributed to raising the minimum legal drinking age (MLDA) and establishing zero tolerance (0.02% blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limit for drivers younger than age 21 years) laws. Data on all drivers younger than age 21 years involved in fatalities in the United States from 1982 to 1997 were used in the study. Quarterly ratios of BAC-positive to BAC-negative drivers in each of the 50 states where analyzed in a pooled cross-sectional time-series analysis. After accounting for differences among the 50 states in various background factors, changes in economic and demographic factors within states over time, and the effects of other related laws, results indicated substantial reductions in alcohol-positive involvement in fatal crashes were associated with the two youth-specific laws. The policy of limiting youth access to alcohol through MLDA laws and reinforcing this action by making it illegal for underage drivers to have any alcohol in their system appears to have been effective in reducing the proportion of fatal crashes involving drinking drivers.

This paper examines the correlates and predictors of driving under the influence behaviors (DUIBs) during the past month by college students. Measures of heavy episodic drinking, monthly drinking frequency, monthly drinking variance, monthly drinks per occasion and reported marijuana use are compared as predictors net of other predictive factors. A cross-sectional telephone survey was conducted with college students by a university social science research laboratory. Respondents attended two large public universities located in the southwestern part of the US. Participants included 803 randomly selected college students. The interview schedule included items from the Core Alcohol and Drug Survey and the College Alcohol Risk Assessment Guide. Several additional last-drinking-event items were also developed for the interview. Bivariate analyses indicate that marijuana use (past year), heavy episodic drinking, reports of DUIBs (driving under the influence or riding with a driver who is under the influence) in the past year, monthly frequency of drinking, the average number of drinks consumed when drinking and age are correlates of DUIBs during the past month. Multivariate analyses indicate past year DUIBs, monthly frequency of drinking and monthly marijuana use predicted recent DUIB.

This commentary reviews current and past vehicle interlock programs for impaired driving offenders with a focus on the challenges that courts and motor vehicle departments face in attempting to implement mandatory programs as required by current federal legislation. There are few offenders in interlock programs compared to the large number of impaired drivers arrested each year. This suggests that, to increase participation, courts will have to threaten more severe sanctions for those offenders who reject interlock programs. A combination of electronic house arrest with interlock programs is suggested as a method of maximizing interlock use.

This work was conducted to find practical predictors that anticipate which driving under the influence (DUI) offenders will continue to drink and drive after a period of alcohol ignition interlock-controlled driving ends. The interlock prevents impaired driving by requiring a low blood alcohol concentration (BAC) breath sample before allowing an engine to start. Each breath test is recorded. The study evaluated the interlock record as a predictor of future DUI offenses relative to driver records and self-report items.Subjects were 2,273 DUI offenders in Alberta, Canada, who used an interlock to gain full reinstatement of driving privileges; for 2,134, the installed periods ranged from 5 to 30 months. A median of 8.1 breath tests was logged for each installed day; 9.9 tests were taken on each day of vehicle use (4.3 starts plus 5.6 running retests). Predictors of postinterlock repeat DUI were compared by sensitivity and survival analyses.Although 69% of all interlock users had at least one BAC testor = .04% (a "fail" test) within the first 5 months, only 9% were reconvicted up to 4 years after interlock removal. Failed interlock tests proportional to all BAC tests taken was the best predictor of driver recidivism risk during the years following interlock removal.The interlock record provides new information, particularly about drivers with no prior DUI offenses. Prior moving violations and driving while suspended convictions, although better predictors than questionnaire data, were poorer than interlock records and prior DUI offenses. The alcohol interlock, already recognized as a useful control device, warrants attention for DUI prediction as well.

Aims The research describes the characteristics and motivations of youthful San Diego County residents who patronize the bars and nightclubs in Tijuana, Mexico. Design Two random-digit-dial surveys of San Diego County residents—one group aged 18–20 years and one aged 21–30 years—was conducted during a 2-year period. Those who reported having visited the bars in Tijuana in the last year were compared with those who had not. Setting All respondents were residents of San Diego County, California, USA. Participants The study comprised 2200 youths between 18 and 30 years of age. Measurements The interview protocol included questions covering demographic characteristics, drinking and drug-use history, experience with Tijuana bars, and ratings of bar features in San Diego and Tijuana. Findings About half of the 18–20-year-olds and a third of the 21–30-year-olds reported visiting bars in Tijuana at least once in the past 12 months. Race, age, gender, heavy drinking and drug-use history were significantly associated with visits to Tijuana bars. The price of alcohol and the perceived freedom to get drunk in Tijuana bars were considered attractive features leading to cross-border drinking. Conclusions The features of the alcohol service in Mexican bars that attract youthful drinkers (low cost and liberal availability of alcohol, lack of formal controls, and presence of heavy drinkers) are similar to those present in other drinking locales that lead to drunkenness. Thus, a better understanding of the characteristics and motivations of the US youths patronizing bars in Tijuana can lead to improved interventions to reduce heavy, risky drinking.

AIMS: To evaluate a large drunk-driving enforcement program at the US/Mexican border to reduce the number of youths crossing the border to drink in Tijuana. This paper also describes the research data used to develop and manage the program. Data from a border breath-test survey were used to dramatize the problem and gain public support for action. The data were also used to help design the enforcement effort and measure progress in reducing the cross-border drinking problem. DESIGN: The number of news events generated around the occurrence of special enforcement efforts were used to measure project activity and to predict changes in the numbers of youths crossing into Mexico, their returning BACs and reductions in alcohol-related crashes during a 3-year period. SETTING: An urban county on the Mexican border. PARTICIPANTS: Underage youths aged 18-20 years and young adults aged 21-30 years residing in San Diego County. MEASUREMENTS: Immigration and Naturalization Services provided population counts of the number of individuals crossing each weekend night from Tijuana into the United States through the San Ysidro border facility. Breath-test surveys of a random sample of these returning crossers provided data on the number of US residents visiting bars and nightclubs in Tijuana and on alcohol consumption at Tijuana bars and nightclubs. Night-time had-been-drinking crash data involving young drivers in several California counties served as an outcome measure of public health and safety. FINDINGS: Analysis of data involving more than 2 million pedestrians returning from Tijuana indicated that the Operation Safe Crossing program reduced the number of late-night crossers by 31.6%. CONCLUSIONS: Effective use of data through media advocacy programs to support an enforcement effort can reduce alcohol-related crashes.

Problem: It is estimated that at least 75% of suspended or revoked drivers continue to drive illegally. In states like California, there are also a substantial and growing number of people who drive without ever having been licensed. Some states, such as Ohio and California, have enacted vehicle impoundment and forfeiture programs as sanctions to reduce these offenses. Published evaluations indicate that vehicle impoundment laws reduce recidivism and crash rates. However, vehicle forfeiture programs have been less successful, mostly because of low levels of enforcement. Method: Police officers and district attorneys from 17 jurisdictions were interviewed by phone or in person to determine current enforcement levels and impediments to more aggressive application of statutory authority. Results and discussion: The survey found that most California jurisdictions are enforcing vehicle impoundments for first-time offenders. However, very few jurisdictions were enforcing the vehicle forfeiture law for repeat offenders. Among the reasons for not enforcing the vehicle forfeiture law was a perception that it was too time-consuming and/or not a priority among prosecutors. However, a number of authorities indicated that the simple vehicle impoundment procedure is often functionally equivalent to forfeiture because many drivers fail to retrieve the vehicle at the end of the impoundment period. Impact on industry: Vehicle impoundment programs are effective mechanisms in deterring illicit driving, and states should be encouraged to initiate vehicle impoundment laws. States could achieve even greater safety benefits if vehicle forfeiture sanctions were extensively used for repeat offenders. However, based on California's experience, the incremental benefits of vehicle forfeiture (over vehicle impoundment) may not be very great.

License suspension effectively reduces recidivism and crash involvement of those convicted of driving while impaired (DWI). The impact of this sanction, however, is being reduced by the large number of offenders (up to 75%) who drive even though suspended. To deal with this problem. several states have enacted laws providing for vehicle impoundment, immobilization, or forfeiture for repeat DWI offenders and for driving while suspended (DWS) offenders. Although a 1992 review of vehicle sanctions for DWI and DWS offenders showed 32 states with such laws, they were infrequently applied. Further, none of those laws had been adequately evaluated. This paper reviews the studies of vehicle action programs in California, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Oregon, and Washington that have been applied broadly enough to permit evaluation. Although none of the studies has applied random assignment to ensure equal groups. several have applied sufficient statistical controls to provide reasonably credible results. All the programs reviewed showed positive effects. including some relatively large recidivism reductions, from denying offenders the use of their vehicles for 1-6 months. Highlighted in this review are several issues that appear to be important to the effectiveness of vehicle sanctioning programs.

Lowering state blood alcohol concentration (BAC) limits to 0.08, though controversial, has been supported by most evaluation studies to date. The Illinois .08 BAC law implemented in 1997 provided a unique opportunity to evaluate the effect of the law without the simultaneous passage of an administrative license revocation (ALR) law, which has clouded some previous evaluations of the .08 laws. The proportion of all drinking drivers in fatal crashes was compared before versus after implementing the .08 law using time-series analysis to evaluate 12 years of fatal crash data for Illinois and five bordering states. The results showed that the proportion of drinking drivers in fatal crashes decreased by 14% in Illinois and increased by 3% in bordering states. The proportion of drinking drivers in fatal crashes in Illinois, though increasing since 1995, was sharply reduced after passage of the .08 law in 1997, saving more than 100 lives in 1998 and 1999 than it would have without the .08 law.

Alcohol use is highly prevalent among U.S. college students and alcohol-related problems are often considered the most serious public health issue on American college campuses. Recent efforts in alcohol prevention on college campuses have focused on changing drinking environments. However, little conceptual work has been produced or published to guide such efforts. This paper presents an empirically based conceptual model of college alcohol use from an environmental perspective. Specifically, the paper discusses the underlying assumptions of environmental approaches to alcohol problems, presents a program model to guide and evaluate interventions, discusses a conceptual model to organize the social environment related to alcohol use and problems, and provides a series of interventions and measurement approaches consistent with the conceptual model.

The purpose of this study was to compare driving under the influence (DUI) offenders on an alcohol ignition interlock program who had or had not changed their primary drinking context from a bar/restaurant where they might be required to drive after drinking before the interlock was installed to drinking at home where driving would not be likely to be required following interlock installation.A total of 171 DUI offenders who were on an ignition interlock program completed a web-based survey. All of these offenders reported that they drank primarily in a bar/restaurant before the interlock was installed. These offenders were classified into 2 groups: adapters who said they currently drink at home and nonadapters who said they still drink in a bar/restaurant. Measures were made of their reported drinking, driving patterns, perceptions of the likely outcomes of being on the interlock, perceived effectiveness of various prevention strategies, and demographic characteristics. Chi-square and t-test analyses were used to compare these 2 groups.Adapters and nonadapters did not differ with regard to any of the demographic characteristics, whether they were a first-time DUI offender, the length of time in the interlock program, number of lockouts (being blocked from starting their cars) they had experienced, miles driven per week, or current driving patterns since being on the interlock program. Adapters were more likely to report changing their drinking plans and habits. Currently they reported fewer drinks per occasion than nonadapters. They were more likely to report reducing the amount they drink, solo drinking or only drinking with a spouse/significant other, and changing their drinking plans and habits. They were also more likely to say that the interlock reminded them to limit their drinking after it is removed and that it might have longer term benefits in preventing future DUIs. They were also more receptive to interventions that might help them separate their drinking from their driving.Interlock clients who report that they have altered their drinking context and a willingness to receive programs that help them separate their drinking from their driving may be more receptive to and benefit from ignition interlock programs.

We appreciate the three commentaries on our paper documenting the effectiveness of lowering the alcohol limit for driving from 0.08 to 0.05 blood alcohol concentration (BAC). Our purpose was to stimulate debate and, from the thoughtful commentaries received, we appear to have been successful. We thank Dr Sheehan [1] for her comments generally supporting the need for a 0.05 law in the United States, given that she is a researcher from a country that has had such a law in place in all Australian states since 1991. We also recognize the importance of the comments of Mr Talpins and Mr Hurley [2, 3], both strong safety advocates who have held senior positions with Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD). They both raised the typical argument expressed by opponents of the 0.05 law that the risk levels associated with BACs in the 0.05–0.07 range are modest. This is certainly true when 0.05 BAC is compared to risk levels at 0.15 and above. However, what is lost in this argument is that lowering the BAC limit for driving in the United States and abroad has typically affected these high BAC drivers just as much as drivers with low BACs [4-7]. This is one of the reasons that we are recommending the 0.05 BAC limit, because it has been proven to reduce the frequency of high BAC (>0.15) drivers in fatal crashes and serves as a general deterrent to drinking and driving. Lowering the BAC limit sends a message to the public that the law is becoming stricter and enforcement more intensive and, thus, reduces alcohol-related crash frequencies at all BAC levels. Mr Talpins also expresses concern that lowering the limit to 0.05 would substantially increase arrests and strain enforcement resources. However, there was no significant increase in driving while intoxicated (DWI) arrests when states lowered their limits from 0.10 to 0.08 in the 1990s and up to 2003 [8]. Lowering the BAC limit to 0.05 reduces the proportion of drivers on the roads who are impaired by alcohol, whether they are at 0.05, 0.08, 0.10 or 0.15 and greater [5, 6]. Mr Hurley notes that the lowering of the BAC limit from 0.10 to 0.08, in which MADD played a major role, saved 600–800 lives a year and argues that the effect of a 0.05 BAC law would be less. However, one study of the effects of the 0.08 BAC laws in the United States estimated that 0.08 BAC laws prevent 360 deaths per year and estimated that lowering the BAC limit even further to 0.05 would prevent an additional 538 deaths per year [5]. If the effects of lowering the limit from 0.08 to 0.05 in the United States are similar to those in Europe and Australia, we can expect a reduction of approximately 8% in impaired driving fatal crashes [9, 10], which would currently translate to 800–900 lives saved annually. We agree and support all four components of the MADD Campaign to Eliminate Drunk Driving; however, there is no evidence that high visibility enforcement has increased in the United States and no evidence that interlock laws have had a general deterrent effect on impaired driving. The advanced technology for passively detecting impaired drivers can certainly be set for a BAC of 0.05 or greater, and in numerous surveys [11] the public agrees with the statement that people should not drive after two or three drinks (less than 0.05 BAC for most people). Why not add one more evidence-based, proven countermeasure to the Campaign and support lowering the limit to 0.05? That policy will save lives as soon as it is adopted. 1. Sheehan M. A .05 BAC limit in the United States: an important challenge for policy, health and safety. Addiction 2014; 109: 875. 2. Talpins S. An argument for prioritizing drivers above the current illegal limit in the United States. Addiction 2014; 109: 875–877. 3. Hurley C. A better path to progress on drunk driving. Addiction 2014; 109: 877–878. 4. Hingson R., Heeren T., Winter M. Lowering state legal blood alcohol limits to 0.08 percent: the effect on fatal motor vehicle crashes. Am J Public Health 1996; 86: 1297–1299. 5. Wagenaar A., Maldonado-Molina M., Ma L., Tobler A., Komro K. Effects of legal BAC limits on fatal crash involvement: analyses of 28 states from 1976 through 2002. J Safety Res 2007; 38: 493–499. 6. Brooks C., Zaal D. Effects of a 0.05 Alcohol Limit in the Australian Capital Territory. Canberra, Australia: Federal Office of Road Safety MR 10; 1992. 7. Homel R. Drink-driving law enforcement and the legal blood alcohol limit in New South Wales. Accid Anal Prev 1994; 26: 147–155. 8. Federal Bureau of Investigation. Uniform Crime Reporting. Washington, DC: US Department of Justice, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Criminal Justice Information Services Division; 2012. 9. Henstridge J., Homel R., Mackay P. The long-term effects of random breath testing in Adelaide. In: Kloeden C. N., McLean A. J., editors. Proceedings of the 13th International Conference on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety—T′95, 13–18 August 1995. Adelaide, Australia: International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (ICADTS); 1995. 10. Smith D. I. Effect on traffic safety of introducing a 0.05% blood alcohol level in Queensland, Australia. Med Sci Law 1988; 28: 165–170. 11. Moulton B. E., Peterson A., Haddix D., Drew L. National Survey of Drinking and Driving Attitudes and Behaviors: 2008 (Volume II: Findings Report). Washington, DC: US Department of Transportation, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; 2010. Language: en

BACKGROUND: It is principally the area of enforcement that offers the greatest opportunity for reducing alcohol-impaired driving in the near future. How much of a reduction in drinking and driving would be achieved by how much improvement in enforcement intensity? METHODS: We developed logistic regression models to explore how enforcement intensity (6 different measures) related to the prevalence of weekend nighttime drivers in the 2007 National Roadside Survey who had been drinking (blood alcohol concentration [BAC] ≥ 0.00 g/dl), who had BACs ≥ 0.05 g/dl, and who were driving with an illegal BAC ≥ 0.08 g/dl. RESULTS: Drivers on the roads in our sample of 30 communities who were exposed to fewer than 228 traffic stops per 10,000 population aged 18 and older had 2.4 times the odds of being BAC positive, 3.6 times the odds of driving with a BAC ≥ 0.05, and 3.8 times the odds of driving with a BAC ≥ 0.08 compared to those drivers on the roads in communities with more than 1,275 traffic stops per 10,000 population. Drivers on the roads in communities with fewer than 3.7 driving under the influence (DUI) arrests per 10,000 population had 2.7 times the odds of BAC-positive drivers on the roads compared to communities with the highest intensity of DUI arrest activity (>38 DUI arrests per 10,000 population). CONCLUSIONS: The number of traffic stops and DUI arrests per capita were significantly associated with the odds of drinking and driving on the roads in these communities. This might reflect traffic enforcement visibility. The findings in this study may help law enforcement agencies around the country adjust their traffic enforcement intensity to reduce impaired driving in their community. Language: en

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine (a) whether among sober (blood alcohol concentration [BAC] = .00%) drivers, being drug positive increases the drivers' risk of being killed in a fatal crash; (b) whether among drinking (BAC > .00%) drivers, being drug positive increases the drivers' risk of being killed in a fatal crash; and (c) whether alcohol and other drugs interact in increasing crash risk. METHOD: We compared BACs for the 2006, 2007, and 2008 crash cases drawn from the U.S. Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) with control drug and blood alcohol data from participants in the 2007 U.S. National Roadside Survey. Only FARS drivers from states with drug information on 80% or more of the drivers who also participated in the 2007 National Roadside Survey were selected. RESULTS: For both sober and drinking drivers, being positive for a drug was found to increase the risk of being fatally injured. When the drug-positive variable was separated into marijuana and other drugs, only the latter was found to contribute significantly to crash risk. In all cases, the contribution of drugs other than alcohol to crash risk was significantly lower than that produced by alcohol. CONCLUSIONS: Although overall, drugs contribute to crash risk regardless of the presence of alcohol, such a contribution is much lower than that by alcohol. The lower contribution of drugs other than alcohol to crash risk relative to that of alcohol suggests caution in focusing too much on drugged driving, potentially diverting scarce resources from curbing drunk driving. (J. Stud. Alcohol Drugs, 75, 56-64, 2014). Language: en

Objective: The public generally assumes that the minimum legal drinking age of 21 (MLDA-21) legislation in the United States is embodied in a single law and therefore all states have the same law. Actually, the MLDA-21 state laws consist of multiple provisions that support the core MLDA-21 laws and include a family of policies directed at controlling underage drinking and underage drinking and driving. Because social host and fake identification laws have recently garnered interest by policy makers in the states, this study was designed to determine their effectiveness.Methods: The effective dates for 2 types of social host laws and 3 fake identification laws were documented using the Alcohol Policy Information System (APIS), the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's (SAMHSA) 2011 Report to Congress on the Prevention and Reduction of Underage Drinking, and legal research tools. These laws include social host prohibitions (SHPs) and social host civil liability (SHCL), the use of fake identification (FID), retailer support for FID, and transfer/production of FID. We used a pre–post design to evaluate the influence on underage drinking-and-driving fatal crashes of these 5 laws using the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) data set for the years 1982 through 2010. The data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM) controlling for as many variables as possible.Results: For those drivers younger than aged 21 years, FID supplier laws were associated with significant decreases in FARS ratios after states adopted these laws (−1.0%, P =.030).Conclusions: The 24 states that have adopted FID supplier laws are saving an estimated 14 lives per year in the United States. An additional 16 lives could be saved if the remaining states adopted this law. FID supplier laws prohibit the production of a FID or transfer of an ID or FID to another person. The more stringent the law (i.e., whether a state prohibits only one element [weaker law] compared to both transferring and manufacturing a FID [stronger]) the more effective a deterrent it becomes to supplying a minor with a FID. States without FID supplier laws should consider adopting them.

Problem: Universities have a major problem with binge drinking by students. This problem is greater for universities near national borders where underage students can cross into areas where the legal drinking age is younger than in the United States. Method: A telephone survey of students at two large universities, within an hour drive of the Mexican border, was conducted to determine the extent of the cross-border drinking problem. Results: On average, the students reported about 6.5 trips across the border to drink in the past year and indicated that when drinking in Mexico they consumed greater amounts of alcohol — more than six drinks compared to 4.5 in the United States. Summary: The study indicated that young males drank the most (8.7 drinks) when in Mexico compared to 4.7 drinks for those older than 21 years and 4.5 drinks for women younger than 21 years. Thus, young male students who are more likely to be drivers than their female comparisons drink twice as much, when in Mexico, creating a significant risk for both. Impact on Industry: Unknown, but companies near the border may wish to consider special education programs aimed at underage male employees.

This paper presents an analysis of the relationships between the passage of key alcohol safety laws and the number of drinking drivers in fatal crashes. The study evaluated three major alcohol safety laws--administrative license revocation laws, 0.10 illegal per se, and 0.08 illegal per se laws--on the proportion of drinking drivers in fatal crashes. Drivers aged 21 and older in fatal crashes at two BAC levels--0.01-0.09 and 0.10 or greater--were considered separately. Drivers under age 21 were not included because they are affected by the Minimum Legal Drinking Age (MLDA) law. This study used data on drinking drivers in fatal crashes from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) covering 16 years (1982-1997) for all 50 states and the District of Columbia. Also included in the study were such variables as per capita alcohol consumption and annual vehicle miles traveled (VMT), which could affect the number of alcohol-related crashes. The results indicate that each of the three laws had a significant relationship to the downward trend in alcohol-related fatal crashes in the United States over that period. This paper points out that this long-term trend is not the product of a single law. Instead, it is the result of the growing impact of several laws over time plus the affect of some factors not included in the model tested (such as the increasing use of sobriety checkpoints and the media's attention to the drinking-and-driving problem).

Tijuana's loosely enforced age-18 drinking limit and low-priced alcohol entices thousands of young Americans to drink. On two weekends in 1997 and 1998, the Mexican government held elections during which alcohol sales were prohibited from midnight Friday night through 10 a.m. Monday. This study reports the effects of the election closings. To detect changes on two election nights, we analyzed the Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) counts and random breath tests of U.S. residents returning from Tijuana. The total prohibition against liquor sales on election Saturday nights was associated with a 71.2% reduction in total pedestrian returnees and a 34.5% reduction on Friday nights with partial closing of bars. Further, results showed that the number of pedestrians with breath alcohol contents (BACs) at 0.08 or higher was reduced during election days. The closing of Tijuana's alcohol establishments reduced the number of border crossers and the BACs of returnees.

The community of Salinas, California, carried out activities to reduce alcoholrelated injuries from November 1993 to December 1996. The first interventions began in November 1993, with increased enforcement by police of sobriety checkpoints combined with extensive use of the media. This was later augmented by additional interventions addressing sales to minors, responsible beverage service, and a general effort to reduce access to alcohol in the community, such as at public events. As these activities were part of a large research project to reduce alcohol-related injury, the means of evaluating this program are very robust, including the use of a comparison community. Specifically, the evaluation data for Salinas and the comparison community included 16 years of crash data, 6 years of hospital discharge data, and, for Salinas only, 4 years of data collected on drivers at roadside surveys. This report will demonstrate that the interventions initiated were successful in lowering the rate of nighttime traff...

Aims. This study was designed to determine the efficacy of alcohol safety interlocks in reducing recidivism among first and second driving-under-the-influence (DUI) offenders. It also evaluates the overall effectiveness of interlock programs where typically only a small portion of DUI offenders elect to install interlocks. Design. The driving records of DUI offenders participating in interlock programs for 6 months for first offenders and 2 years for second offenders were compared with similar offenders who chose not to participate. Setting. A province-wide program in Alberta, Canada. Participants. Records of 35 132 drivers convicted of DUI between 1 July 1998 and 30 September 1996 were analyzed. Measurements. Repeat DUI offenses during and after the interlock period. Findings. While the offenders had interlocks on their vehicles, DUI recidivism was substantially reduced. Once the interlock had been removed and the participants had been reinstated, their DUI rate was the same as other offenders indicating that the interlock reduced recidivism while in place. Because only 8.9% of eligible drivers elected to participate in the interlock program, the program did not significantly increase the overall effectiveness of the province's management of DUI offenders. Conclusions. Interlocks are associated with a major reduction in DUI recidivism while on the vehicle of the offender. However, because few offenders elect to participate, the program produces only a small (5.9%) overall reduction in the recidivism rate of all DUI offenders.

On a typical weekend night between 12:00 a.m. and 4:00 a.m., about 4 thousand Americans 25 or younger cross back into the United States from a night in Tijuana, Mexico, clubs. More than 40% of the drinkers return the next morning with an illegal blood-alcohol concentration (.08 or higher). To study this phenomenon and to provide data with which to evaluate the community effort in San Diego County, a border research effort involving two separate surveys of individuals entering and leaving Mexico was established in June 1997. This article briefly reviews past roadside survey studies and reports on the survey methods developed to conduct these surveys and the procedures required to analyze the data collected.

The purpose of this study was to determine the criteria for detecting various driver BACs under field conditions. Survey sites were selected by multistage sampling procedure designed to be representative of the United States. Passive alcohol sensors housed in a flashlight (PAS) were used for evaluating alcohol use while also using evidential breath test devices. Data from the tests have allowed the determination of appropriate criteria at various blood alcohol concentrations. Results of these studies indicate that more widespread use of PAS can aid detection of drinking drivers.

This article describes the multistage sampling system employed in the 1996 national roadside survey and compares it to the sampling methods employed in the two prior surveys in 1973 and 1986. Also described are the data collection procedures at the selected sites, the breath-test devices used to collect blood alcohol concentration (BAC) data, and the methods used to impute BAC values where breath-test measures were not obtained. Overall, almost twice as many (6,298 in 1996 compared to 3,698 in 1973 and 3,043 in 1986) drivers were interviewed in the most recent national survey as in the previous efforts. The procedures implemented in the three surveys are sufficiently similar to permit comparison of these surveys conducted at 10-year intervals.

Poulin, Boudreau and Ashbridge [Addiction 2007;102(1):51-61.] provide an intriguing analysis of the problem of adolescents riding with drunk drivers. Their analysis, based on a survey of 13 000 students in grades 7-12 in the four Maritime Provinces of Canada, includes individual, school and province variables. Highlighted are the factors not within the student's direct control that determine the extent of riding with a drunk driver (RDD). They found that rural residence, single parent or no parents, socio-economic status (SES), prevalence of driving under the influence (DUI), lower licensure rate and lower educational attainment in the community were associated with RDD. Of particular interest was their finding that, once the impact of those factors was controlled, being licensed reduced the probability of RDD. Presumably, this is because youths with licenses have less need to ride with others and thus are less likely to ride with a drunk driver. The Poulin et al. results highlight the need to pay more attention to the risk that unlicensed youths will become riders in alcohol-related crashes. Sixteen-year-old drivers have crash rates that are three times greater than 17-year-olds and five times greater than 18-year-olds. The current official response to this problem is GDL, which extends the period of adult-supervised driving and provides for an intermediate period when the novice driver may not carry teenage passengers or drive late at night. This should reduce the opportunity for teenage passengers to be injured in crashes involving drinking novice drivers. There is substantial evidence that GDL programs are effective in reducing the crashes of novice drivers. However, there have been no studies of the impact of GDL on teenage passengers. Although imposing night-time restrictions on teenage driversand teenage passengers appears to effectively reduce novice-driver injuries, there is evidence that GDL laws achieve their primary impact through a delay in the licensing of 16- and 17-year-olds. If GDL laws are achieving their impact primarily by limiting the number of licensed 16- and 17-year-olds, then more teenagers in that age group will need rides. It is therefore important to study the limits on mobility (a potential economic burden on some families) and safety (if lack of a license increases RDD) if a teenager is unlicensed. The Poulin et al. paper challenges us to increase our knowledge about RDD as a signal for alcohol problems. It suggests a need to examine more closely the trade-off between discouraging early licensing versus reducing RDD by making licensing more available. It also suggests more research on programs that discourage RDD that go beyond current educational efforts. Language: en

This analysis examines whether roadside surveys that measure changes in the prevalence of driving after drinking can be used to evaluate the impact of interventions designed to reduce alcohol-related traffic crashes. Using data collected at a roadside survey over a 4-year period in two California communities (N = 33,614), this analysis examines the relationship of BAC and drinks since 5 P.M., aggregated on a monthly basis, with nighttime injury crash data from the California Highway Patrol aggregated on a monthly basis. A regression analysis was used in which daytime injury and drinking style were covariates. The data demonstrate that temporal changes in drinking and driving collected at a roadside survey reflect temporal changes in nighttime injury rates. Hence, this study substantiates the use of roadside surveys as an appropriate methodology to evaluate drinking and driving interventions.

SUMMARY People convicted of drunk-driving offenses have an 80% higher likelihood of being involved in fatal crashes. License suspension is an effective but incomplete sanction as many offenders continue to drive unlicensed. Breath alcohol ignition interlock devices, which require a low alcohol breath sample before a car will start, hold promise for the control of some drunk driving offenders. Evidence shows these devices are effective while installed on the cars of those who elect to install them, but that elective use is still low, and even if installed recidivism rates climb once the interlock period is completed. This paper reviews interlock program problem areas and presents a plan for a brief intervention/case management program which is currently being tested in Alberta, Canada.

This report covers an evaluation of programs designed to reduce unlawful driving in the states of Washington and Oregon by providing for the marking of the license plate of a vehicle when its operator was apprehended driving while suspended. In both states, the records of 101,000 drivers convicted of a drunk-driving offense who were potentially at risk for this sanction were analyzed using time series analysis to determine the general deterrent effect of the law. In addition, the specific deterrent effect of having one's vehicle marked was studied in Oregon using analysis of covariance. Results of these analyses indicated that the law had both a general and specific deterrence effect in Oregon but no measurable effect in Washington.