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DADDS Detects Drunk Drivers And Disables Vehicles

Drinking And Driving

In a nation where one in three adults is at risk of alcohol use disorder, it’s perhaps no surprise that drunk driving continues to kill approximately 10,000 people across the United States each year, but now a new piece of technology introduced by leading auto-makers and the Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is looking to stop drunk drivers right in their tracks.

This new technology, known as the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety — or “DADSS” for short — detects when a driver is over the legal alcohol limit by instantly measuring the driver’s breath or skin and in cases where the blood alcohol level (BAC) exceeds the legal limit across all 50 states of 0.08 percent, the system disables the vehicle. A notion which Joann Muller speculates to be “seemingly good news for Uber” in a report published on Forbes.

The new breath-based system, which is being developed by the U.S. federal government in partnership with major automakers and their supplies, integrates a steering wheel mounted sensor which uses infrared light beams to measure the concentrations of alcohol and carbon dioxide present and according to report on Forbes, it’s less intrusive than today’s in-car breathalyzers.

The new technology was unveiled at an event in Washington, D.C. on Thursday, according to PC Magazine.

The NHTSA referred to the potentially life-saving technology as “groundbreaking” in a published statement issued on Thursday.

Anthony Foxx, the U.S. Transportation Secretary, was quoted in the aforementioned statement as having said that “DADDS brings enormous potential to save” more lives.

This is a perfect example of why we at DOT are bullish on technology (…) Education, awareness and enforcement have succeeded in dramatically reducing drunk driving fatalities, but the advanced technology of DADSS brings enormous potential to save even more lives.

What are your thoughts on this new technology designed to prevent drunk driving?

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