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The ignition-interlock system, similar to a Breathalyzer, requires a person with two or more DUI offenses to blow into a device that detects the amount of alcohol on his or her breath.
If the system detects a breath-alcohol content of more than .025, or one drink for a person who is about 160 pounds, the car will not start, said Stephen Ernie, executive director of the state's DUI Association, a nonprofit organization contracted by the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation to do ignition-interlock quality assurance.
The devices became state law in 2001. Under the law, those with two or more DUIs are required to serve one year of license suspension, after which time they are required to put the interlock device in place for another year at their own expense.
"We've never really tried separating the drinker from his or her car," Ernie said. "That's where the ignition interlock comes in. It's also a behavioral modification tool, a reminder that they have to be sober when they are driving."
Last year, 4,192 people statewide had the device in their cars, with 275 of them in Bucks County, 171 in Montgomery County, 160 in Chester County, 98 in Delaware County and 62 in Philadelphia County, Ernie said.
He admitted that the low-device count in Philadelphia did seem "odd," but he declined to speculate why.
Out of the 4,192 interlock users last year, there were 28,161 instances in which people attempted to drive and were prevented from doing so, Alison Wenger, PennDOT spokeswoman, said. The total number of sober miles clocked by those same users was about 45 million, she said.
When an interlock system is in place, drivers are not only required to blow in it to start the car, but also the device requires rolling road tests every five to 45 minutes. If drivers fail a test while driving, a "really annoying beeping sound" emits and drivers are locked out of their car the next time they attempt to operate it, Ernie said.
Although purchasing the device when not required to do so under law is rare, Ernie said he has heard of people who have bought or leased the device voluntarily.
There are six interlock manufacturers in the state and the devices are sold everywhere from auto-service centers to electronic shops like Circuit City, Ernie said.
The devices cost about $1,000 a year, or about $3 a day, he said. They require service every 60 days, at which time data about the operator's driving habits are downloaded from the system.
Ernie said that there are no similar devices on the market to test drug intoxication, but with saliva testing becoming more refined, he said that there is potential for an interlock system for drugs.
"We will never be able to arrest our way out of this problem," he said. "So we have to keep trying a holistic approach - a combination of proper treatment, a stiff dose of the law and behavioral modification." *
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