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Home | Car Safety | When Did Drunk Driving Become Illegal?

When Did Drunk Driving Become Illegal? Why you can trust SafeWise products considered250+research hours in 25+ in-home tests10k+years of combined experience176+homes and people protected10M+

For over 12 years, SafeWise has conducted independent research, hands-on testing, and expert consultations to provide trustworthy, human-written home safety advice. Read our methodology.

By Celeste Tholen Mar 17, 2023 1 min read

The first state to adopt a law against drinking and driving was New York, in 1910. Other states quickly followed. This was only a few years after the mass production of the automobile started—it didn’t take long for law enforcement to realize the dangers of mixing alcohol and driving.

There was no legal limit established at first, however. It was up to each arresting officer to determine whether an individual was too drunk to drive. And it would be over 40 years before a reliable way to measure BAC would become widespread.

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Here are some other interesting events in the history of the fight against drunk driving:

• The precursor to today’s Breathalyzers, appropriately called the Drunkometer, was patented in 1936. Individuals being tested breathed into balloon-type gadget, and the air was mixed with a chemical solution. The resulting color of the air indicated the amount of intoxication.
• Two years after the Drunkometer was introduced, the first commonly used legal limit for blood alcohol concentration, or BAC, was established. It was .15%—nearly twice today’s limit.
• The Breathalyzer was invented in 1953 by a former police captain named Robert Borkenstein.
• In 1984, the National Minimum Drinking Age Act was passed, requiring states to raise the drinking age to 21.
• In 1998, a federal incentive grant was offered to states to encourage them to set a legal BAC limit of .08%.
• In 2000, .08% was made the national legal limit for drinking and driving.

Drunk driving laws are still evolving, too: Utah recently voted to change its legal limit to .05%, making it the strictest in the nation. Depending on that adjustment’s success in reducing drunk driving accidents, it’s possible other states could follow.

Despite the laws against it, some people still choose to drive while intoxicated. To boost your security if you ever end up in an accident with a drunk driver, we suggest investing in a dash cam that can record the incident.

Related articles on SafeWise

• 5 Tips to Make You Safer on the Road
• How to Report a Drunk Driver
• The Safest and Most Dangerous States for Drivers
• Distracted Driving Laws by State
• Is it Safe to Use a Hands-free Device to Talk on a Cellphone While Driving?
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Share Article Written by Celeste Tholen Celeste has dedicated her decade-long career to reporting and reviews that help people make well-informed decisions. She once oversaw the editorial strategy and production for SafeWise, with a goal to help everyone find the information they need to make their homes and lives safer. Now she is a contributing writer. Prior to SafeWise, she worked as an editor and reporter for KSL and Deseret News. She holds a Bachelor's degree in Journalism. In her free time, she volunteers at the local botanical garden and writers for the community newspaper.

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