Here’s why the CT blood-alcohol limit could soon be lowered to .05
Warning lights have been installed along the Interstate 84 westbound Exit 8 off-ramp as part of an effort to combat wrong-way driving. Connecticut’s 2022 death toll associated with wrong-way crashes has increased to 15 — nearly double the eight people killed in each of the past two years.
HARTFORD — Although they were not enough to stop the proposal to cut the current .08percent blood alcohol limit to .05-percent for drivers and boaters, a diverse group of lawmakers including urban Democrats and suburban Republicans show that the bill might face wider-spread opposition in the General Assembly.
A 21-15 vote in the Transportation Committee last week indicates soft support in an effort to join Utah, currently the only state with the lower threshold for impaired operation of vehicles and watercraft.
Opposition included Rep. Tom O’Dea, R-New Canaan and Rep. Geraldo Reyes Jr., D-Waterbury, a deputy speaker of the House, who rarely find themselves on the same side of an issue.
“I have a strong problem with the fact (of ) marijuana use, now that it has been recreationally approved, and we’re not addressing it,” said O’Dea, who spoke remotely under the legislature’s continued pandemic rules. “We’re ignoring the fact we put in legislation that police cannot pull someone over for probable cause when they see and smell marijuana smoke billowing out of a car. Pilots are allowed to fly at .04. How did we pick .05? Does anyone know?”
“I think going from .08 to .05 is fine, but I think it is frankly ridiculous when we have such a marijuana problem going on,” O’Dea added. “I think we are ignoring the biggest problem we had. I am going to vote no until we address the marijuana problem that’s staring at us in the face.”
It’s harder for law enforcement to measure impairment levels for the use of cannabis because the effects differ from person to person. Police are currently taught drug-recognition strategies to test impairment, but it cannot be measured as a straight percentage on the body through a breath test like alcohol.
“This one is a little bit more personal,” said Reyes. “As a person who has struggled with alcoholism in his life and by the grace of God has been sober for 13 years, I come from the perspective that it’s not the actual blood alcohol percentage number. It has to be a personal decision that you actually want to be conscious of not drinking and driving.” Other Democrats who voted against the bill included Rep. Christine Conley, of Groton, Sen. Norm Needleman of Essex, Rep. David Michel of Stamford and Rep. Travis Simms of Norwalk.
“You’re going to have people challenge that this is too much of a mandate and that we’re going to restrict people’s ability to be able to have a cocktail or two, and then obviously the evidence of impaired driving’s devastation on our roads,” said Sen. Tony Hwang of Fairfield, a top Republican on the committee who voted for the bill. “Two beers, threes beers, is impaired. When you are on the road, it is a compromise in safety.”
“This is about people to think differently when they go out and drink,” said state Sen. Christine Cohen, D-Guilford, cochairwoman of the committee. “With all the public transportation options available, with the ride shares and ride services available like Ubers and Lyfts and taxis and CT Transit and other transit district bus services, and families and friends, we want people to think differently about going out. Impairment begins after the first drink.”
“It’s increased rates of speed. It’s impairment, It’s heavy vehicles,” said state Rep. Roland Lemar, DNew Haven, co-chairman of the committee. “These are hard issues and I know there will be differing opinions in each of the four caucuses on this vote. These are hard questions we ask in the legislature moving forward, not just here in Connecticut but across the country, because just like Connecticut, the rest of the country is seeing a remarkable rise in the number of highway fatalities, roadway fatalities in our communities. The science is also clear: impairment begins at .05.”
Lemar noted that Utah, where the lower rate took effect in 2018, has seen an 11-percent reduction in fatal crashes. “The biggest consequence of this is we’ll save lives,” he said.
“Certainly this is one of the counter measures that we ought to be talking about when we talk about wrong-way driving here in the state of Connecticut,” Cohen added. The bill next heads to the Senate.
The committee also approved legislation that would allow the Department of Transportation to further tackle the issue of wrong way driving. The bill goes next to the House of Representatives.
Cohen said that counter measures could include rumble strips to warning wrong-way drivers, as well as detection methods to warn other vehicle operators. She added that the DOT has identified 120 exit ramps for potential counter measures, while 236 ramps could benefit with changes.
“There is a shocking number of fatalities that we are seeing in our state and these are all preventable,” Lemar added. “In almost every circumstance the highway off ramps and on ramps are in the exact location they were the year before, 10 years before, 20 years, 30 years, 40 years before. It’s not new construction in the circumstances that are leading to wrong-way driving. It’s not new signage that’s led to wrong-way driving. It’s the lack of personal responsible. Eighty percent of the fatalities that we’re seeing are tied directly to alcohol use. We’ve got to do better.”
In other action, mostly along party lines, the panel approved legislation to enact the recommendations of the state’s Vision Zero Council, including a ban on open containers of alcohol in the passenger areas of vehicles, and mandatory helmets for motorcycle riders. It would also require towns and cities to develop strategies to make it safer for pedestrians and bicycle riders. The bill now goes to the House.
kdixon@ctpost.com Twitter: @KenDixonCT