Technology Ensures School Bus Drivers Are Sober Behind the Wheel
By: Peter Lawrence
Source: School Transportation News
Recently, I attended a presentation at the Rochester Area Transportation Supervisor’s Association in New York State on Drug and Alcohol awareness to meet U.S. federal requirements as stated in law ยง382.603
At the meeting, we had the opportunity to see a new technology being used to monitor and notify carriers if an operator or mechanic has alcohol in their bloodstream. The state-of-the-art technology was originally designed to detect chemical weapons from sensors that were dropped from aircrafts.
Sober Steering, a company based out of Canada, developed this product that acts as an alcohol interlock for school buses and other vehicles. They accomplish this through transdermal sensors that are built into the steering wheel. The sensors detect alcohol through direct contact with the skin. With this alcohol interlock, in the event that a driver tries to start a vehicle with alcohol in their bloodstream, the transmission will not be able to shift out of park and an electronic notification is sent immediately to their employer. Another neat feature of this system allows for randomized rolling tests where the operator can provide a sample while the vehicle is in motion.
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