ALCOHOL INVOLVEMENT IN FATAL MOTOR VEHICLE ACCIDENTS IN 41 CALIFORNIA COUNTIES IN 1966

FORTY-ONE COUNTIES WERE SURVEYED BY PERSONNEL OF THE CALIFORNIA TRAFFIC SAFETY FOUNDATION UTILIZING THE "STANDARD REPORT OF ALCOHOL INVOLVEMENT IN FATAL MOTOR VEHICLE TRAFFIC ACCIDENTS." OF 2,099 ADULT DRIVERS AND PEDESTRIANS DYING WITHIN SIX HOURS OF THEIR ACCIDENTS, 1,953 (93%) WERE TESTED FOR ALCOHOL. PEDESTRIANS BETWEEN THE AGES OF 15-64 WERE FOUND TO HAVE BEEN DRINKING MORE OFTEN THAN THOSE AGED 65 OR OLDER. AS BLOOD-ALCOHOL RATIOS INCREASED, THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO GROUPS BECAME MORE APPARENT. OF 1,510 DRIVERS TESTED FOR ALCOHOL, 53% HAD BEEN DRINKING PRIOR TO THEIR ACCIDENTS. THERE WAS A SIGNIFICANT DIFFERENCE BETWEEN DRIVERS OF VEHICLES RESPONSIBLE FOR THEIR ACCIDENTS AS COMPARED WITH DRIVERS OF VEHICLES DEEMED NOT RESPONSIBLE. DIFFERENCES WERE MORE PRONOUNCED AS BLOOD-ALCOHOL RATIOS INCREASED. A COMPARISON OF EIGHT LARGE COUNTIES COVERING A FIVE-YEAR PERIOD FAILED TO SHOW ANY SIGNIFICANT TRENDS IN ALCOHOL INVOLVEMENT IN FATAL ACCIDENTS. ANALYSIS OF THE DRINKERS KILLED SHOWED THAT 82% OF THE DRIVERS AND 86% OF THE PEDESTRIANS HAD BLOOD-ALCOHOL RATIOS OF 0.10% OR HIGHER. THE 41 COUNTIES WERE COMPARED AGAINST THE FEDERAL DRAFT STANDARDS. SIXTEEN FAILED TO MEET THE 95% STANDARD. /AUTHOR/

• Supplemental Notes:
  • 14 Pp, 3 TaB
• Corporate Authors:

  California Traffic Safety Foundation

  ,    
• Authors:
  • Neilson, R A
• Publication Date: 1967-7

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Age; Alcohols; Blood alcohol levels; Counties; Drivers; Drunk drivers; Drunk driving; Fatalities; Pedestrians; Traffic crashes
• Uncontrolled Terms: Motor vehicle accidents
• Subject Areas: Highways; Pedestrians and Bicyclists; Safety and Human Factors;

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 00220846
• Record Type: Publication
• Source Agency: Nat Safety Council Safety Res Info Serv
• Files: TRIS
• Created Date: Jun 15 1970 12:00AM