This is an archived article that was published on sltrib.com in 2017, and information in the article may be outdated. It is provided only for personal research purposes and may not be reprinted.
The Utah Legislature is under the impression that dropping the DUI limit from 0.08 to 0.05 will lower the amount of driving under the influence on Utah roads. It will not.
The majority of those who drink and drive are responsible adults. A few are not, and their levels will probably exceed 0.08. There are far more folks texting, distracted or fatigued while driving than under the influence of alcohol.
Scientific studies have shown that driving with levels between 0.05 and 0.08 does not significantly impact a driver's ability. We will just be increasing the number of responsible people we "catch."
Utah has not invested enough in public transportation to provide viable alternatives to driving cars in order to get from home to work, or to and from entertainment. We are a society dependent on cars. To point to Europe as an example just shows their ignorance, since their population centers are much closer together. And they have far more advanced public transportation, so Europeans don't need to use their automobiles as much.
With Utah being the only state at 0.05, tourists and businesses will think twice about coming here. We will just demonstrate yet another Utah weird factor. Maybe that is the real intent.
Michael Feldman
Murray