How many traffic deaths are caused by drunk driving?
Drunk driving causes roughly one-third of all traffic deaths in the United States.
How often are individuals killed due to drunk driving?
Someone in the United States is killed by a drunk driver every 40 minutes, on average.
About three in every ten Americans will be involved in an alcohol-related car crash.
How do you know if you’re legally drunk?
According to the law in all 50 U.S. states, a driver is legally drunk when his or her blood alcohol content (BAC) level is at or above .08 grams per deciliter (g/dL).
To reach a BAC level of .08 g/dL, a man weighing 170 pounds would need to consume four standard drinks in one hour on an empty stomach. A woman weighing about 140 pounds would need to consume three drinks in one hour.
How long does alcohol remain in your system?
Alcohol remains in the body for up to six hours after drinking.
What are some physiological effects of alcohol?
Vital organs that contain a lot of water, such as the brain, are particularly vulnerable to the effects of alcohol and are at a higher risk to be affected.
Even at very low BAC levels, alcohol affects an individual’s response time and driving ability.
How is BAC related to the chance of crashing?
After .05 BAC, the probability of a crash increases significantly. It increases even more after .08 BAC.
A driver with a BAC of .08 g/dL is eleven times more likely to be involved in a fatal accident than a driver who has consumed no alcohol whatsoever.
Does the time of day affect alcohol consumption and drunk driving?
Drivers are much more likely to be impaired by alcohol consumption during the night than during the day.
Around 75% of fatal crashes occurring between midnight and 3 a.m. involve alcohol.
Is a specific age group at risk?
Drivers aged 21-24 demonstrate the highest rates of drunk driving.
Do drunk drivers only drive under the influence once or twice?
A drunk driver apprehended for the first time has already driven drunk on average more than 80 times before being arrested.
Does gender play a role in alcohol consumption and drunk driving?
Men are twice as likely as women to drive under the influence of alcohol and consequently to be involved in a fatal collision.
References
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Motor Vehicle Safety: Impaired Driving.” Accessed: August 3, 2009.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Traffic Safety Facts: 2007 Traffic Safety Annual Assessment—Alcohol-Impaired Driving Fatalities.” Accessed: August 10, 2009.
National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. “Traffic Safety Facts: Alcohol-Impaired Driving.” Accessed: August 12, 2009.
Strayer, David L., Frank A. Drews, and Dennis J. Crouch. “A Comparison of the Cell Phone Driver and the Drunk Driver.” Accessed: August 12, 2009.
Van Tuyl, Christine. 2006. Drunk Driving. Chicago, IL: Greenhaven Press.