America
The car that won't let you drive if you are drunk
New York, March 22
Researchers are working on an in-built blood alcohol level tester that can prevent people under its influence from driving.
The
team at the University of Michigan studied the impact of installing
these alcohol ignition interlock devices in all newly-purchased vehicles
over a 15-year period.
Their estimates of injury prevention and
cost savings are significant. They found that around 85 percent of the
crashes resulting in deaths could be avoided.
"That would mean
preventing more than 59,000 deaths in US alone over 15 years," the team
reported in a paper published in the American Journal of Public Health.
Another 1.25 million non-fatal injuries would also be prevented.
The cost of installing the devices would be recouped after just three years.
"Our
analysis demonstrates the significant public health benefit and
societal cost savings associated with including alcohol ignition
interlock devices as standard equipment in all new cars," said lead
author Patrick Carter from University of Michigan.
By
capitalising on recent technological advancements that make
alcohol-detecting sensors seamless to the driver and applying such
technology more broadly to all newly-built vehicles, "we can actually
have a substantial injury prevention impact among traditionally
hard-to-reach high-risk populations," Carter added.