Reducing Alcohol-Impaired Driving: Sobriety Checkpoints

(2000 Archived Review)

Task Force Finding*

Sobriety checkpoints are designed to systematically stop drivers to assess their level of alcohol impairment. The goal is to deter alcohol-impaired driving by increasing the perceived risk of arrest. There are two types of sobriety checkpoints. At random breath testing (RBT) checkpoints, all drivers are stopped and tested for blood alcohol levels. RBT checkpoints are common in Australia and several European countries. In the United States, selective breath testing (SBT) checkpoints are used. At these checkpoints, police must have a reason to suspect that the driver has been drinking (i.e., probable cause) before testing blood alcohol levels.

Sobriety checkpoints are strongly recommended based on their effectiveness in reducing alcohol-impaired driving, alcohol-related crashes, and associated fatal and nonfatal injuries in a variety of settings and among various populations. Corollary arrests are a potential added benefit. The brief intrusion this entails into drivers’ privacy is generally considered justified by the public interest served by checkpoints. Four economic studies were identified, all of which indicated sizeable economic benefits.

*From the following publication:

Task Force on Community Preventive Services. Recommendations to reduce injuries to motor vehicle occupants: increasing child safety seat use, increasing safety belt use, and reducing alcohol-impaired driving. [PDF - 2.30MB] Am J Prev Med 2001;21(4S):16–22.

Review completed: June 2000