NTSB Asks for Tougher Laws for Habitual Drunk Drivers

In a press release marking the 20th anniversary of the deadliest drunk driving auto accident in U.S. history, the National Traffic Safety Board (NTSB)  is asking each state to adopt NTSB’s anti-drunk driving program.

The program addresses what the NTSB calls “hard core drinking drivers” which was in response to the May 14, 1998 Kentucky drunk driving accident that killed 24 young people and 3 adults and injured many more.  The drunk driver was a repeat offender with a blood alcohol level of .24 driving the in the opposite direction on I-71. 

The eleven components of the program include sobriety checkpoints, enforcement of driver’s license suspensions and revocations, and devices which prevent drunk drivers from starting their vehicles, as well as other legislative issues.  While the model program has had some success, not one state has implemented all eleven recommendations.

As Mark V. Rosenker, NTSB Chairman, said “Unfortunately, the tragedy of so many lives lost 20 years ago in Carrollton, Kentucky, as a result of a hard core drinking driver is repeated every day on a smaller scale.  We know how to address this problem.  What’s needed are more effective measures on the state level to help ensure that responsible drivers are not endangered by those who continue to drink and drive.”