Alcohol-Impaired Drivers Involved in Fatal Crashes, by Gender and State, 2007-2008¹

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[National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Alcohol impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes, by gender and state, 2007-2008. Ann Emerg Med. 2010:55:211.]

In response to recent data from the Federal Bureau of Investigation indicating an increase in the number of female drivers arrested for driving under the influence (DUI) of alcohol, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) undertook a study of fatal crashes in which the driver was impaired by alcohol intake. Data from the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS) from 2007 and 2008 were analyzed with respect to alcohol involvement, driver sex, and the state in which the crash occurred. Alcohol-impaired drivers were defined as drivers with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08 g/dL or greater. Estimates of alcohol involvement are generated with a combination of BAC values that are reported to FARS and imputed BAC values when they are not reported to FARS. In all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico, it is illegal per se to drive or operate a motorcycle with a BAC of .08 g/dL or above (alcohol impairment).

Between 2007 and 2008, there was a 9% decrease in the number of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes. In 2008, there were 1,837 fatalities in crashes involving a female alcohol-impaired driver. In these crashes, 62% of the deaths were of the alcohol-impaired drivers, 18% were of passengers in the driver's vehicle, 13% were of occupants of other vehicles, and 7% were to nonoccupants, ie, pedestrians or pedal cyclists.

When viewed at the state level, 37 states plus the District of Columbia registered a decrease in the number of alcohol-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes, 11 states showed an increase, and the number was unchanged in 2 states. States showing an increase in the number of alcohol-involved drivers differed by sex: the 11 states that showed an increase for men were Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Idaho, Kansas, New Hampshire, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Virginia, and Wyoming; the 10 states with an increased number of fatal crashes with female drivers were Indiana, Kansas, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Ohio, Tennessee, Washington, West Virginia, and Wyoming. In states in which the number of alcohol-impaired female drivers increased, the percentage increase was greater than the corresponding percentage increase among men (23% versus 9%).

A slightly higher percentage of alcohol-impaired female drivers had one or more passengers riding with them at the time of the crashes (35%) compared with male alcohol-involved drivers (31%). This difference is also observed when only child passengers (aged 14 years and younger) are considered: 3% of female versus 1% of male alcohol-involved drivers involved in fatal crashes were carrying child passengers.

Copies of the 4-page report, Alcohol-Impaired Drivers Involved in Fatal Crashes, by Gender and State, 2007-2008, can be obtained from the National Center for Statistics and analysis, NHTSA, 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE, Washington, DC 20590 or downloaded from the NHTSA Web site at http://www-nrd.nhtsa.dot.gov/Pubs/811195.PDF.

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Reference 

1. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. Alcohol-Impaired Drivers Involved in Fatal Crashes, by Gender and State, 2007-2008. Washington, DC: National Highway Traffic Safety Administration; 2009;Traffic Safety Facts Research Note. DOT HS 811 195
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