Driving While Under the Influence of Alcohol

Driving while under the influence of alcohol is the 5th most leading cause of death
in America. In 2011, 9,878 people were killed in an alcohol related crash. Out of the 9,878
people killed, 1,140 were children 14 and younger involved in a motor-vehicle accident. 211 of
those children were in an alcohol related accident; 62% of those children were riding with the
drunk driver. That results in a death every 30 minutes. Studies show that over the past 5 years,
alcohol related death rates have decreased in 32 states, but increased in 17 states. With that
information it is clearly shown that though some people have made a better decision before
getting behind the wheel, not everybody has. Americans are able to prevent such accidents by
making better decisions, there’s no excuse for not only risking the driver’s life, but another
citizens as well.

When people drink and drive they put everybody on the road in danger, that is why
MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) has decided to try and change people’s decision before
getting on the road. MADD was founded in 1980; since then they have helped cut alcohol
related death rates in half. MADD has helped save over 27,000 young people’s lives with the
passing of the 21 minimum drinking age law. Not only that but MADD helps serve a
victim/survivor of drunk driving, or drugged driving every 8 minutes. Since 1980, MADD has
helped save 300,000 people’s lives, and counting. MADD is only one of the programs in the
United States that helps prevent drunk driving. TADD (Teens Against Drunk Driving) is another
program that encourages teens to stop and think before they make the decision to drink and
drive. TADD helps give awareness to teens around the United States by giving speeches
everywhere they can, including schools. “Together, our combined efforts and resources, can
and will reach many teens. Together we will save lives, while developing smarter and more
responsible adults. We desperately need to educate our children about the responsibilities of
driving… long before they get behind the wheel!” - William Michael Piecuch, Jr., Founder and
President of T.A.D.D.

Organizations have indeed made their impact of prevention against drunk driving, but
so have the many commercials and awareness videos shown on TV and/or broadcasted on a
radio or social networking site. Statistics show that after TV shows and commercials started
educating their viewers on drunk driving, the death rates went down by 30%. Yet, it’s still one
of America’s greatest issues. A first time offender of drinking and driving has driven drunk 80
times before being arrested. With that, 50-75% of convicted drunk drivers continue to drive
after their license has been suspended. Possibly, our problem isn’t the fact that people drink
and drive, but the fact that they continue to drive after being convicted for a first time.

Proposing a solution to this problem is a difficult thing to do, other than to say people
need to think twice before getting behind the wheel. Though, MADD believes they may have
come up with a solution. Not only is the government discussing about lowering the legal
drinking limit from 0.08% to 0.05% but MADD has been discussing their ideas. Their ideas
include uses technology to prevent this problem, such as, having an app to inform somebody if
they’re too drunk to drive, or a device that would cause a car to be stuck in park, if they’re too
drunk to drive. Such technology will of course cost a lot of money to create, but if that is
compared to the $132 billion it costs in the United States each year in drunk driving accidents
then it is worth it.

1 in 3 people will be involved in an alcohol-related accident in their lifetime. This doesn’t
have to be the case. With new technology and the help of many programs around the United
States, it is shown that we can help turn this nation into a nation that does not drink and drive.
“Impaired drivers represent one of our nation’s greatest threats, there is no excuse to lose
more than 40 lives a day, especially when it is 100 percent preventable.” –NHTSA
Administrator Jeffrey W. Runge, M.D.