Fight gaining momentum against DUI

I received a letter from Joel Sawyer, communications director working out of the governor's office, which said, in part, "As you may have seen, just last month the governor signed a new DUI bill, removing loopholes for prosecution and toughening penalties for repeat offenders. Its passage was due in no small part to folks like you, who made your voice heard in a variety of ways, such as with your column(s) in The Post and Courier. Thanks for all that you do."

You and the state of South Carolina, Joel, are most welcome. Progress is being made. Many of us will continue the anti-DUI movement until first-time offenders are dealt with severely.

Automotive technology is becoming involved. Henry Stoffer of Crain Publications filed a report from Washington, D.C., stating, "The day when your car or truck decides whether you are sober enough to drive may not be as far off as it sounds."

According to the story, a five-year research program, funded in part by automakers, aims to develop devices that automatically would test the sobriety of a driver, not just those convicted of drunken driving. The goal is to have, in every vehicle, a largely invisible device that would keep it from running if the driver had too much to drink.

"This is a huge challenge," says Sue Ferguson, chairwoman of a committee overseeing the effort. "It is the next frontier" of safety technology, she says.

The research program launched a Web site, www.dadss.org. DADSS is short for Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety. The site solicits ideas from technology developers and builds public acceptance for the concept of alcohol detectors in all vehicles.

Stoffer says, "A first step: getting rid of the word 'interlock,' which has bad connotations. The devices that some convicted drivers must blow into to get their vehicles to operate are called interlocks. A failed effort in the early 1970s aimed to require seat belt interlocks."

Stoffer apparently is unaware of MADD's successful efforts in many states in having drunken-driving interlock legislation passed into law.

Stoffer continues, "Last year, Nissan Motor Co. displayed a concept vehicle equipped with early versions of devices that one day may be widely used. They include a sensor in the shift lever that measures alcohol in perspiration, 'sniffers' that check cabin air for alcohol in exhaled breath and a camera that monitors eye movements.

Nice effort, Nissan. But it is bothersome how many drivers who prefer to drink and drive who would not buy a Nissan motor car. That is the reason one carmaker cannot go it alone.

Stoffer reports that about 1.4 million drunken-driving arrests are made each year in the United States. Safety officials say that figure is a small fraction of the 40 million to 50 million annual trips they estimated drunken drivers make.

It is estimated that equipping vehicles with devices designed to stop drunken driving would save 9,000 lives a year. Of the 42,000 people who die on U.S. highways annually, about 18,000 perish in alcohol-related crashes.

Drive time

AARP Driver Safety Courses are being offered in June throughout Greater Charleston.

Here's a list:

--June 3-4, Miriam Brown Community Center, 9 a.m.-1 p.m. at 118 Royall Ave., Old Village, Mount Pleasant. Call 849-2061.

--June 4-5, Summerville Senior Center, 312 N. Laurel St., Summerville. Call 871-5053.

--June 5-6, St. Francis Hospital, 2027 Magwood Drive, West Ashley. Call toll free 800-863-2273 or 402-2273.

--June 11-12, East Cooper Hospital, 1200 Johnnie Dodds Blvd., Mount Pleasant, 856-4430 or 884-7031.

--June 17-18, Summerville Medical Center, 295 Midland Parkway, Summerville, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., 824-5068; Miriam Brown Community Center, 118 Royall Ave., Old Village, Mount Pleasant, 849-2061; David Sojourner Senior Center, 5361 E. Jim Bilton Blvd., St. George, 563-3709, 563-0114.

Any groups, churches and businesses that would like to be the host for a course can call John Mallon of AARP at 871-2304.

For a classroom course locator online, go to www.aarp.org. Click on Driver Safety and enter your ZIP code. You'll find a course listed near you. Or call toll-free, 888-AARP-now (227-7669).

People also can register and take the AARP Online Driver Safety Course. The course, which is available anytime and anyplace, has helped millions of drivers remain safe on today's roads.

George Spaulding is a retired General Motors executive and distinguished executive-in-residence emeritus at the School of Business and Economics at the College of Charleston. He can be reached at 2 Wharfside St., 2A, Charleston, SC 29401.