MADD Canada calls for mandatory alcohol interlocks

Canadian provinces and territories all deserve poor grades for failing to establish mandatory alcohol ignition interlock programs for those convicted of impaired driving, according to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD Canada).
An ignition interlock device is an in-car alcohol breath-screening device that prevents a vehicle from starting if it detects a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) over a pre-set limit.
In a new study and report card on the use of alcohol ignition interlocks in Canada, MADD calls on provincial and territorial governments to introduce mandatory alcohol ignition interlock programs, according to a MADD release.
“We want to see mandatory alcohol interlocks for all convicted impaired drivers,” Margaret Miller, MADD Canada’s national president, said in the release. “There is no reason why the provinces and territories are not fully using this technology.
“Alcohol ignition interlocks are behaviour-altering, life-saving, proven technology that can keep sober drivers safe from drinking drivers.”
The study, Rating the Provinces and Territories on Ignition Interlock Programs: The 2008 Report Card, was published to prompt provinces and territories to introduce better interlock programs, which leads to safer roads for all Canadians, Miller adds.
According to Andy Murie, MADD Canada’s CEO, research shows that interlock programs should be mandatory and the minimum period of time that a driver is on the alcohol interlock program should be a year.
“Technology for impaired driving can be part of the solution for reducing impaired driving deaths and injuries,” Murie says, “but the programs like alcohol interlocks need to be comprehensive with other impaired driving countermeasures.”