The Detection of DWI Motorcyclists
According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in 2005, about 27 percent of motorcycle operators involved in fatal crashes had a BAC of 0.08 or higher.
Clearly, enforcing impaired driving laws is a key to reducing the number of alcohol-related motorcyclist fatalities. But which clues should be used to detect impaired motorcyclists?
NHTSA sponsored research to develop a set of behavioral cues to be used by law enforcement personnel to detect motorcyclists who are operating their vehicles while intoxicated. The researchers began by interviewing experienced patrol officers from across the country to determine what behavioral cues have been used to detect impaired motorcyclists. A few, primarily motorcycle officers, suggested cues that reflected considerable understanding of the mental and physical requirements of riding a motorcycle. Others believed the cues to be identical to those used to detect impaired drivers. But some officers, even those with many years of experience, reported they believe there are no cues that can be used to distinguish DWI from unimpaired motorcycle operation.
In addition to interviewing law enforcement personnel, the research team developed a database of 1,000 motorcycle DWI arrest reports. The research team focused on officers’ narratives and motorcyclists’ behaviors that motivated the stops, and correlated those behaviors with blood alcohol concentrations (BAC). Analysis of the interviews and arrest report data resulted in an inventory of about 100 cues that have been observed by officers in relation to impaired operation of motorcycles.
The researchers, working closely with law enforcement personnel, conducted two major field studies involving more than 50 sites throughout the United States. Officers recorded information about every enforcement stop they made of a motorcyclist. Those field studies permitted the researchers to identify the most effective cues and to calculate the probabilities those cues were predictive of DWI. This brochure highlights the results of that research.
Fourteen cues were identified that best discriminate between DWI and unimpaired motorcycle operation. These cues have been labeled as “Excellent Predictors” and “Good Predictors,” based on the study’s results. The excellent cues predicted impaired motorcycle operation at least 50 percent of the time. The good cues predicted impaired motorcycle operation 30 to 49 percent of the time. The special coordination and balance requirements of riding a two-wheeled vehicle provided most of the behaviors in the “Excellent” category of cues.