NTSC Paper
Roadside Alcohol Testing Offering Live Data Transmission to NTSC Data Base.
Intro
Alcolizer Technology is a world-leader in the field of Alcohol and Drug testing and is recognised as one of Australia’s most innovative and forward-thinking company’s.
As a 100% Australian owned manufacturer of alcohol breath testing instruments with over 25 years’ experience in research and development, custom design and manufacturing, Alcolizer has built an international reputation for innovation, quality and service for Police Force and industry customers.
Alcolizer Technology is the largest provider of Breath Testing devices to Australian Police, the largest provider to the Australian Resource sector, and has an expanding global distribution network. In order to service this diverse customer base, Alcolizer specializes in customising instruments to suit local laws, operating conditions and to meet special customer requirements. Alcolizer Technology has an established history of working closely with Police Forces to customise both hardware and software to meet specific local needs.
Alcolizer Technology’s Law Enforcement Series has been in use with Australian and International Police Forces for more than 12 years. The latest evolution in this range, the Alcolizer LE5, is designed as a host to accept our existing alcohol testing module plus new, innovative products currently under development, such as drug testing and evidential breath testing modules. The LE5 will now also link to a SmartPhone to automatically download test results to Cloud based software that can transfer data to a central NTSC Database. This system, known as AlcoConnect Live, can enable NTSC and/or Traffic Police to gather live test results from across Vietnam and utilize this statistical data to monitor and target drink driving programs to improve road safety outcomes.
As a technology company focused on innovation, quality manufacturing, commitment to training and ongoing product support, Alcolizer Technology is proud be a sponsor of NTSC Vietnam Conference 2015. We look forward to continuing our commitment to development and delivery of sustainable Alcohol and Drug testing programs across the globe.
Why Collect Alcohol Test Data
All countries struggle to find funding for road safety programs. Hospital records of road deaths and serious injury, where Blood Alcohol Concentration (BAC) is tested, prove drink driving is a large problem, but to determine the extent of the problem, high volume road side screening by Police is required, and the results of tests recorded. Once securely stored and downloaded to a central database:
- Collection and analysis of test results from road users provides a ‘statistical picture’ of the impact of alcohol on road safety
- This picture enables Governments to identify focus areas for action and/or change
- Identifying problem areas facilitates the development of targeted road safety programs
- These programs benefit the public in a number of ways:
- direct benefit by catching a percentage of drink driving offenders
- The more people testedin high profile Police Operations, the greater the public focus and awareness that if you drink and drive you will be caught
- Supported by advertising (Billboards, TV, Print media) public awareness of Police drink driving operations increases dramatically
- High profile alcohol testing campaigns (Police Testing and Publicity) have the capacity to modify general public behaviour and attitudes towards drink driving
- Acting as a strong deterrent to drink driving
- Public acknowledgement drink driving is unnacceptable
The Australian[LW1] Experience
Random breath testing (RBT) was first introduced in Victoria, Australia in 1976 and commenced by Australia’s largest Police Force, New South Wales (NSW) Police in 1982.
The impact of RBT has been a significant reduction in road deaths. NSW Police, that uses Alcolizer LE5’s for all roadside alcohol testing, has seen a steady decline in road deaths over the last 33 years.
Success in reducing alcohol related deaths in NSW, as in all Australian States, has been the result of significantly increased levels of RBT, accompanied by intense publicity campaigns designed to deter people from drink driving.
NSW RBT Program
NSW Police have approximately 2,500 Alcolizer LE5 alcohol testers, used by around 15,000 general officers and Traffic Police. Very high volume alcohol testing is supported by strong advertising campaigns, conducted particularly in peak holiday periods when alcohol consumption rises.
What Works
From nearly 40 years of RBT, Australian Police know what reduces alcohol related road deaths:
High volume, “anywhere, anytime” Police Random Breath Testing combined with strong advertising campaigns. Run at the same time these programs act as a strong deterrent, and surveys confirm more people decide not to drink and drive. If continued over many years, as has been the case in Australia, public attitudes to drinking and driving do change, and less people take the risk.
Collecting Quality Data
If data is to be used as the basis for justifying increased Police roadside alcohol testing, then the quality of the data collected is very important, both in terms of efficient use of Government funds, and to be fair to the public. To collect quality data Police need to use the best current alcohol testers with the following features:
•Data logging that records every button push, every function – All actions with the instrument are recorded;
•No deletion of any record is possible – only full download to Government Database – NTSC
•Instrument requires every Passive Test to be immediately followed by an Active (mouthpiece) Test
•Only allow “deep lung air” testing to eliminate mouth alcohol and produce a true BAC result
•Ensure there is a large Data Log capacity so no records are lost - 30,000 Records min
Data Transfer Options
Manual Transfer – An authorized Police Officer uses the USB connection to download the data log to a computer using AlcoConnect software.
Whilst this system has been used for a number of years, few Police Forces have effectively used manual data transfer to collect a reliable data base of alcohol breath testing information. Reasons for this include:
- The need to have a PC at convenient locations across the country;
- Need to load software onto all computers (time and cost);
- Need to train Officers in download procedure
- Concern that once downloaded, records can be deleted/manipulated
- Someone has to manually transfer to a national database – who, how often?
Automatic Transfer
The latest technology from Alcolizer now enables automatic data transfer. With pairing to a Blue Tooth enables smartphone, loaded with the AlcoConnect APP, all test results are automatically transferred to the phone. When alcohol is detected, Driver data is collected and an infringement ticket printed with Photo of the driver and/or photo of their Drivers Licence.
Advantages of automatic transfer include:
- Minimal Officer involvement – data automatically collected
- No download to PC required
- Data protection – results can’t be deleted, changed, or lost
- Minimal training is use of system
- NTSC database is updated every time an instrument is in use
Benefits of Current National Data
Using Alcolizer LE5 alcohol tester, paired to a BlueTooth smartphone with the AlcoConnect APP, NTSC and Vietnam Police can have current, National, drink driving Data. The benefits of this data include:
- Ability to analyse, identify issues/problem areas
- Police & NTSC can use this data to develop targeted, statistically verified programs
- Government can advertise drink driving campaigns for maximum public deterrence
- Police and NTSC can use current, accurate Data to monitor and improve the effect of programs
- Over time, high volume testing combined with widespread publicity can change Public attitudes to drink driving
- Government can measure outcomes and the success or programs
- Safer Roads in Vietnam
Public Alcohol Testing
Generally the focus of alcohol testing is Police conducting roadside tests to catch drivers who have consumed alcohol and have a BAC reading above the drink driving limit.
Some of the drivers caught are repeat offenders, ignore the law, and will drink and drive until they are severely penalized (fines, loss of licence, etc).
Some drivers caught with an illegal BAC simply made a mistake. They believe they are OK to drive, and make a poor decision by guessing whether they are over the limit or not.
Research has found if people have the opportunity to voluntarily test themselves on an accurate, public alcohol tester before they choose to drive:
- 16% of people over the limit will choose not to drive once they know their BAC
- People may choose to drink at venues where they know they can test themselves before driving
- Once they have the ability to test themselves, some people will moderate or cease their drinking before they reach the legal BAC limit
Public breath testing has the potential to enable a large number of “responsible drinkers”to voluntarily decide not to drive and/or moderate their own drinking behaviour and thereby reduce the number of alcohol affected drivers on the road.
This is a poorly understood and often ignored aspect of road safety, but one that has the potential to further reduce road deaths and injury and make roads safer place.
Alcolizer would like to work with NTSC, Police, and Public Interest Groups to conduct trials of public breath testing in major drinking venues – There is a significant opportunity for Government, Police, and the Alcohol Industry to engage in a trial that comes at drink driving from a very different angle, but can offer an additional contribution to road safety.
Alcolizer – The Future –Drug Testing
Whilst successful RBT programs in Australia over nearly forty (40) years has seen a significant reduction in alcohol related road deaths, the reduction in total road deaths has stalled. Part of this relates to the initial rapid reduction following the introduction of RBT, then continued but slower reduction as programs grew in number of tests and publicity over the years.
However, whilst alcohol deaths continued to reduce, road deaths attributed to the use of illicit drug use by drivers started to impact road death statistics. As drug testing was introduced, the impact of drug driving has become increasingly apparent.
13% of all road deaths in NSW from 2010-2013 involved illicit drugs (Source – NSW Centre for Road Safety)
As Australia’s largest manufacturer and supplier of alcohol breath testers, Alcolizer’s Research and Development Division has turned its attention to developing new, fast, accurate, lower cost drug testing technology.
To deliver cost efficiency for Police in Australia and Internationally, Alcolizer has chosen to develop a drug testing module that will slide onto the Alcolizer LE5 Main module – this allows the LE5 to be a breath tester with an alcohol module fitted, and a drug tester with the drug module fitted.
This exciting new technology is scheduled to commence trials early in 2016
[LW1]