ALCOHOL AND MOTOR VEHICLE DRIVERS
ALTHOUGH BEVERAGE ALCOHOL APPEARS TO GIVE SUBJECTIVE STIMULANT ACTION TO A PERSON, ITS REAL EFFECT IS A DEPRESSANT ACTION ON MOST OF THE FUNCTIONS OF BODY AND MIND. THE ALCOHOL EFFECT WHICH INTERFERES WITH DRIVING ABILITY IS FOURFOLD: (1) A POORER GRADE OF ATTENTION TO EXTERNAL SIGNALS AND ENVIRONMENT; (2) SLOWER RESPONSES OF EYES, HANDS AND FEET; (3) LESS DEPENDABLE, THAT IS MORE VARIABLE, MUSCULAR RESPONSES; (4) INCREASED SELF ASSURANCE WHICH PROMPTS TO THE ASSUMPTION OF RIGHT-OF-WAY AND WILLINGNESS TO TAKE A CHANCE. ALTHOUGH ALCOHOL IS DIRECTLY MENTIONED IN ONLY 7 TO 10 PER CENT OF FATAL HIGHWAY TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS, IT IS THE BELIEF OF INFORMED TRAFFIC OFFICIALS THAT ONE-THIRD OF SUCH ACCIDENTS ARE AT LEAST PARTLY CHARGEABLE TO USE OF ALCOHOL BY THE DRIVER. OFFICIALS NEED A METHOD TO DEFINITELY DETERMINE WHETHER A DRIVER IS INTOXICATED AS A BASIS FOR COURT ACTION. DETERMINATION OF PERCENTAGE OF ALCOHOL IN THE BLOOD OR URINE BY BIOCHEMICAL MEANS IS A FEASIBLE UNDERTAKING. /AUTHOR/
- Record URL:
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Supplemental Notes:
- Vol 13, ParT I, PP 362 - 381, 62 REF; part of Report of Committee on Highway Traffic. Distribution, posting, or copying of this PDF is strictly prohibited without written permission of the Transportation Research Board of the National Academy of Sciences. Unless otherwise indicated, all materials in this PDF are copyrighted by the National Academy of Sciences. Copyright © National Academy of Sciences. All rights reserved.
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Authors:
- Miles, W R
- Matthews, W W
- Moyer, R A
- Marsh, B W
- Publication Date: 1934
Media Info
- Media Type: Digital/other
- Monograph Title: Proceedings of the Thirteenth Annual Meeting of the Highway Research Board Held at Washington, D.C. December 7-8, 1933. Part I: Reports of Research Committees and Papers
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Serial:
- Highway Research Board Proceedings
- Volume: 13
- Publisher: Highway Research Board
Subject/Index Terms
- TRT Terms: Alcohols; Alertness; Blood alcohol levels; Drivers; Drunk drivers; Drunk driving; Reaction time; Testing; Urine
- Uncontrolled Terms: Driver reaction
- Subject Areas: Highways; Safety and Human Factors;
Filing Info
- Accession Number: 00223303
- Record Type: Publication
- Files: TRIS, TRB
- Created Date: Aug 23 1971 12:00AM