TWG ‘Roadmap’ Calls for Urgent, Phased Approach To Getting Drunk and Impaired Driving Prevention Technology in All New Cars, Saving 10,000 Lives Annually

Group Warns: ‘We cannot let perfection stand in the way of progress’

March 5 Deadline Looms for Public Comments to NHTSA on the Tech

WASHINGTON (February 29, 2024) – A team of 13 traffic safety experts today submitted recommendations to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) for implementing a federal requirement that all new passenger vehicles come equipped with drunk and impaired driving prevention technology, and provided an example of how the requirement could be achieved (see chart below).

The law, enacted in November 2021 as part of the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), directs NHTSA to create a federal rule by November 15, 2024, for passive impaired driving prevention technology. Two to three years after the rule is final, auto manufacturers would be required to build the technology into new passenger vehicles.

NHTSA took a step toward establishing the new regulation on January 5, when it published an Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) to collect public comment through Tuesday, March 5.

The 13-member Technical Working Group (TWG) response to the ANPRM, “Roadmap to Implementation of Driver Impairment Prevention Technology,” recommends a phased approach that begins with alcohol detection and prevention and builds toward detecting other types of driver impairment.

The group warned against delays caused by a search for a perfect system.

“[A] system that is capable of detecting all types of impairment and intervening whether the car is stationary or moving is our vision. However, we cannot let perfection stand in the way of progress. More than 10,000 lives can be saved each year by a system that prevents drivers with an illegal BAC from operating their vehicles,” wrote the TWG.

Pre-start Alcohol Detection and Intervention

The TWG recommends taking advantage of passive alcohol sensors that have been in development for more than a decade to immediately start saving lives and preventing injuries caused by alcohol-impaired driving. Equipping every new vehicle with sensors that measure alcohol in a driver’s breath or through the skin and prevent a vehicle from starting if the driver is drunk would save an estimated 10,000 lives per year when fully implemented, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.

One public-private venture, the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS), is testing technology in Virginia, Maryland and Connecticut. Some auto suppliers are adapting DADSS sensors and technology into their own alcohol detection systems.

“Given the readiness or near-readiness of BAC detection technologies resulting from the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety (DADSS) program and other sources, this requirement could be implemented within the timeframes prescribed in the IIJA …” wrote the Technical Working Group. “The regulatory pathway should also include phased in date-certain milestones for implementing future system functions that may not be feasible in initial iterations.”

BAC and Beyond

Future system functions could include the ability to detect other types of impairment such as distraction and fatigue as well as alcohol and other drugs. The Technical Working Group said setting milestones for additional technology implementation will provide incentives for development.

“The key takeaway is that a regulation requiring alcohol impairment detection and prevention is feasible now. The Advance Notice of Proposed Rulemaking that NHTSA issued in January describes regulatory approaches that could make this happen,” said TWG co-chair Jeff Michael, Distinguished Scholar at the Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health and former associate administrator at NHTSA. “We can save 10,000 lives a year with pre-start alcohol detection and intervention and save even more lives by building in the technology for distracted and drowsy driving.”

The TWG urged NHTSA to consider existing and developing technologies that could begin reducing traffic deaths within the timeframe required by the law.

“The ANPRM recognizes that the alcohol impaired driving problem is ‘enormous and devastating,’” said TWG co-chair Stephanie Manning, Chief Government Affairs Officer of Mothers Against Drunk Driving. “The Congressional mandate is clear and gives us an opportunity to end drunk and impaired driving once and for all. With two years of double-digit increases in drunk driving deaths, we need to take this historic opportunity to address a growing public health crisis.”

About the Technical Working Group

The Technical Working Group is an independent body comprised of experts with extensive knowledge of vehicle safety technologies, the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) regulatory process and public health initiatives.

Members:

Nat Beuse, Chief Safety Officer, Aurora; MADD Board Member

Kadija Ferryman, PhD, Assistant Professor, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Shannon Frattaroli, PhD, Director, Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy

Kelly Funkhouser, Program Manager, Vehicle Technology, Consumer Reports

Shaun Kildare, PhD, Director of Research, Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety

Anders Lie, PhD, retired, former Board Member, European New Car Assessment Program (Euro NCAP), former Traffic Safety Specialist, Swedish Transport Administration

Stephanie Manning, Chief Government Affairs Officer, Mothers Against Drunk Driving (co-chair)

Jeffrey Michael, EdD, Distinguished Scholar, Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy (co-chair)

Stephen Oesch, retired, former Senior Vice President, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

Roger Saul, PhD, retired, former Director, Vehicle Research and Test Center, National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA)

Ken Snyder, Executive Director, Shingo Institute, Utah State Huntsman School of Business; MADD Volunteer and Victim of Impaired Driving

Don Tracy, retired, former Vice President, DENSO North America

David Zuby, Executive Vice President and Chief Research Officer, Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

Example of an Approach to a Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard that would comply with Section 24220 of the IIJA and be Consistent with the TWG Roadmap

Contact: Becky Iannotta, becky.iannotta@madd.org