Report on Alcohol-Related Traffic Accident Fatalities
In 2006, 17,602 people were killed in the United States in alcohol-related motor vehicle traffic crashes, and an estimated 13,470 people were killed in traffic crashes that involved at least one driver or motorcycle operator with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of .08 or higher, according to a report released Monday by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). Also on Monday, U.S. Transportation Secretary Mary E. Peters announced the launch of a national drunk driving enforcement crackdown, and appealed to the judicial branch to use all the tools it has available to keep drunk driving offenders off the roads.