Anti-Drunk Driving Technology To Come In All New Vehicles in the Hudson Valley?
Will all new vehicles on Hudson Valley roads be equipped with built-in technology to stop drunk drivers? There have already been ignition interlock devices for some time for those who have been convicted of drunk driving. There are also infrared cameras in some models that monitor a motorists' behavior behind the wheel. But Congress feels that is not enough, and now they're pushing all automakers for more action to cut back on drunk driving-related fatalities.
Could this new technology be coming to places like the Hudson Valley as early as 2026?
Yahoo says that this is all part of the massive trillion-dollar infrastructure bill that President Joe Biden is expected to sign. This would call on all automakers to include some sort of technology in all new vehicles. The bill would require a new system that would “passively monitor the performance of a driver of a motor vehicle to accurately identify whether that driver may be impaired.” But how exactly? That's what they'll have five years to figure, if this bill is signed. One principal mobility analyst says we'll need something beyond breathalyzers.
The NHTSA says that an average of around 10,000 Americans die every year due to drunk driving-related accidents. Some states have already lowered the legal limit, and some lawmakers in New York have already pushed that the state follow suit.
This woman's case would have been a good example. In May, police say they arrested a New York state woman whose blood alcohol level was over four times the legal limit. Police say they found the 37-year-old woman parked on the side of the road on a Saturday night. WIVT says that the woman failed sobriety tests and blew a .33%.