RICHMOND, Va. (CBS19 NEWS) — A commercial trial deployment of a new alcohol detection technology has kicked off in Virginia.
The Virginia Department of Motor Vehicles, the Automotive Coalition for Traffic Safety, and transportation, intermodal and logistics services provider Schneider announced the collaboration this week.
According to a release, Schneider is the first truckload carrier that will conduct a trial deployment of the Driver Alcohol Detection System for Safety Program, or DADSS.
The Driven to Protect Initiative, a public-private partnership between the DMV and DADSS, has been working to test in-vehicle alcohol detection technology since 2018.
“Virginians should be proud of our state’s leadership in public safety and technology innovation,” said Virginia DMV Commissioner Richard D. Holcomb, the Governor’s Highway Safety Representative. “The progress we have made since 2018 has advanced this game-changing anti-drunk driving technology, and I am excited to see how this new deployment will bring the technology one step closer to saving countless lives on our roadways.”
Schneider is known for being an early adopter of safety technology for its trucks, including implementing speed limiters in the 1980s.
“Safety comes first at Schneider, always, and we believe in going above and beyond industry standards. We look forward to the opportunity to pilot groundbreaking safety technology developed to help save lives,” said Schneider Vice President of Safety, Driver Training and Compliance Tom DiSalvi. “We know our team of professional drivers will embrace this technology because, just as with previous safety enhancements, they will be part of a solution that will make our highways safer.”
As part of this program, Schneider will outfit eight of its cabs with the latest breath sensors next year.
The release says each vehicle will log more than 100,000 sensor miles during 2022, which will help to refine the technology.
The Insurance Institute for Highways Safety says that when widely deployed, this kind of alcohol detection system could help to eliminate the number one cause of traffic fatalities on roads in the United States: DUI.
For more information on DADSS, click here.