EDUCATE MOTORISTS ON IMPAIRED DRIVING

A Dec. 8 News editorial, "Drunken driving," noted that lowering the blood
alcohol content from .10 to .08 will help us come to grips with a problem
not only in New York State but across the country.

As an instructor in the New York State Alcohol and Drug Rehabilitation
Program for the past 14 years, the problem as I see it is that most drivers
who are arrested for violating existing motor vehicle laws are not
necessarily intoxicated, but impaired.

Most drivers realize they should not operate a motor vehicle if they are
intoxicated. Unfortunately, there are those who continue to drive and need
help with an addiction that may already be present. But for the majority of
people, the real problem is educating drivers of all ages about the reality
of impaired driving. Alcohol or other drugs in substantially lower levels
than the "legal limit" may have a serious impact on the body, one's
judgment and overall ability to safely operate a motor vehicle.

Most people I have been in contact with in state-sponsored and
court-ordered "drinking and driving" classes may not have been intoxicated
while on the road, but certainly their abilities were impaired.

It would be useful therefore, to use the term impaired driving rather than
drunken driving when referring to the problem of using alcohol and other
drugs and the need to keep our roads safe.

Samuel J. Lojacono

East Amherst