Russian Emergencies Minister Sergey Shoigu has suggested that all cars in Russia be equipped with breathalyzers. That move would be 100-percent effective in preventing drunken driving, he noted at the opening of a security exhibition in Moscow. Russian Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliev expressed support for the idea as well, according to Gazeta.ru.
“A person sits at the wheel and, if he is drunk, the car won’t start because alcohol fumes are being given off and so the machine blocks the car’s starting system,†Shoigu explained. He admitted the move may not be popular, saying, “No one is likely to put such a system in his car voluntarily. If we take combating drunken driving seriously, we have to make it mandatory.â€
Russia has a notoriously high traffic fatality rate. According to Sky News last year, two-thirds of all the road deaths in Europe occur in Russia. One hundred people per day die on Russia’s roads, which is a major contributor to Russia's steep mortality rate and ten times more per automobile than in Great Britain. Bad roads and the lack of emergency equipment and trained personnel are also a major problem. Traffic police are not trained in first aid, for example.
