Citation

Birch R. Proc. Int. Counc. Alcohol Drugs Traffic Safety Conf. 1981; 1981: 785-795.

Copyright

(Copyright © 1981, The author(s) and the Council, Publisher International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Following laboratory trials on substantive breath measuring instruments the intoxylyzer 4011a, the gas chromatograph intoximeter mark IV and the breathalyzer 1000 appeared to be suitable instruments to obtain a valid indication of a subject's blood/alcohol concentration, and were the easiest to operate. In order to obtain an assessment of their use in police stations, by police officers on members of the public, it was decided to use them in a field trial. Twelve police stations in Great Britain were selected. Motorists who had been arrested for a drinking/driving offence and completed the current legislative procedure were invited to use a substantive breath measuring instrument. Out of a total of 1776 motorists arrested, 1516 (85%) agreed to give a breath sample. Prior to the commencement of the field trial the police consulted with a number of interested organisations, and press conferences were held nationally and in the police areas where the instruments were to be used. An aspect of the trial was to evaluate the capabilities and number of police officers required as operators and the level of training required. Throughout the trial, operators reported on the use of each type of instrument, together with observations from the arrested motorists involved. Results showed that all instruments were suitable for police use. (TRRL)