Tampa Bay Injury Attorney Blog
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) wants to continue working with a coalition of automakers to develop a Driver Alcohol Detection System to curb the growing trend of DUI fatalities.
According to reports, in 2012, deaths in crashes involving drunk drivers increased 4.6 percent, taking 10,322 lives, compared to 9,865 in 2011.
The Driver Alcohol Detection System, or DADSS, promises to detect when a driver is above the legal alcohol limit of 0.08 BAC adopted by all 50 U.S. states, including Florida. The automatic system would be enabled every time the car is started, but unobtrusive so it would not pose an inconvenience to the non-intoxicated driver.
By early 2015, the agency hopes to have a research vehicle that incorporates two different approaches to measuring alcohol in a person’s system– a touch-based and breath-based system. To date, research using laboratory-scale prototype device is underway, while testing with on-road prototype devices is expected within the next few years.
NHTSA and ACTS are contributing a combined total of $6.5 million to help advance the research into DADSS.
The DUI Auto Accident Attorneys at Whittel & Melton help auto accident victims throughout the Tampa Bay area, including in the communities of: Carrollwood, Brandon, Plant City, Temple Terrace, Lutz , Ruskin, Valrico, Apollo Beach, Safety Harbor, Clearwater, Clearwater Beach, St. Pete Beach, Tierra Verde, Belleair, Belleair Bluffs, Pinellas Park, Oldsmar, Palm Harbor, Tarpon Springs, St. Petersburg, Feather Sound, Bradenton, Bradenton Beach, Sarasota, Venice and Longboat Key.
If you have been injured in an alcohol-related accident, call us today at (813) 221-3200, (727) 823-0000 or toll free, (866) 608-5529.