Alcohol and Highway Safety 2006: A Review of the State of Knowledge
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Summary
**Alcohol and Highway Safety 2006: A Review of the State of Knowledge** is a comprehensive technical report commissioned by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and authored by Robert B. Voas and John C. Lacey. The document serves as the sixth volume in a series reviewing the state of knowledge regarding alcohol and highway safety, specifically synthesizing research published between 2000 and 2006, with some inclusion of early 2007 reports. The primary objective is to provide a consolidated overview of current scientific understanding, identifying trends in alcohol-related crashes, evaluating the efficacy of countermeasures, and highlighting gaps in existing research. The methodology employed is a systematic literature review. The authors conducted a structured search of academic databases and government reports, screening documents for relevance to alcohol and highway safety. The review is organized into six chapters covering the scope of the problem, alcohol’s physiological effects, risks associated with specific demographic groups, prevention strategies, and future research needs. Data sources include national surveys such as the Fatality Analysis Reporting System (FARS), the National Roadside Survey, and various household and telephone surveys on drinking and driving behavior. Key findings indicate a significant downward trend in alcohol-related traffic fatalities in the United States from 1982 to 2005. The report attributes this decline to reduced per capita alcohol consumption, decreased prevalence of high-risk young drivers, and fewer drivers with alcohol use disorders. Despite these improvements, alcohol remains a critical factor in severe crashes, particularly among specific high-risk groups, including teenage novice drivers, college students, and motorcyclists. The review details how alcohol impairs driving performance and increases relative crash risk, noting that risk escalates sharply with blood alcohol concentration (BAC). The report also examines disparities across racial and ethnic groups and the specific vulnerabilities of older drivers and pedestrians. The significance of this report lies in its structured evaluation of prevention strategies categorized into primary, secondary, and tertiary levels. Primary prevention focuses on reducing risky drinking through pricing, availability controls, and social norms. Secondary prevention addresses impaired driving via enforcement, legislation (such as zero-tolerance laws for underage drivers), and public awareness campaigns. Tertiary prevention targets recidivism among convicted offenders through treatment programs, ignition interlocks, and monitoring technologies. The authors conclude by identifying critical research needs, including the evaluation of new enforcement technologies, the effectiveness of brief interventions, and the impact of emerging countermeasures. This document provides a foundational reference for policymakers and researchers aiming to further reduce alcohol-related highway injuries and fatalities.
Key finding
The report serves as a literature review and compilation of existing research rather than a primary study generating new empirical results.
Methodology
review
Provenance
The full processing record for this entry. Every stage of this paper's journey through the pipeline is logged — what ran, with which tool and model, how many attempts it took, and when it last completed. Discovered via bulk_ingest_rosap on 2026-05-23 (42 acquisition events logged).
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Summary generated by qwen3.6-27b-prismaquant on 2026-06-10; verification: verified.
Topics
Ranked by relevance to this paper. Hover a topic for its definition.
- dui enforcement
- alcohol
- drowsy as impairment
- alcohol detection systems
- driver education effectiveness
- illicit drugs
Information type
What kind of knowledge this paper contributes, grouped by family — independent of topic (what it is about) and method (how it was studied).
- Applied Guidance: policy recommendations
- Empirical Findings: observational prevalence, crash risk outcomes