Fairfax Alcohol Safety Action Project Second Year Evaluation Summary: A Report Prepared by the Virginia Highway and Transportation Research Council Under the Sponsorship of the Highway Safety Division of Virginia

About the report:

The Fairfax Alcohol Safety Action Project (ASAP) was begun in January 1972 as one of thirty-five federally funded demonstration projects designed to implement and evaluate a comprehensive community alcohol countermeasures program. The Fairfax ASAP was approved for three years and funded with $2.1 million in an attempt to confront and ameliorate the community's drunk driving problem. A principal goal of the Fairfax ASAP was to effect a reduction in the number of alcohol-related fatalities, injuries, and property damage crashes. The goal was approached through a systems-oriented program providing countermeasures of increased and extensive enforcement of driving while intoxicated (DWI) offenses, a special judicial countermeasure consisting of a probation and review process, programs of rehabilitation and treatment for arrested DWIs, and extensive public information and education. Results of the project after the first year of operations were quite encouraging. Data indicated a statistically significant reduction in injury crashes in 1972, based on a linear regression model using 1962-1971 data. Fatal crashes and fatalities declined but not significantly, but overall societal costs of motor vehicle crashes declined and estimated cost savings indicated a 3 to 1 ratio of project benefits to costs. The purpose of this report is to summarize as succinctly as possible the results of the project evaluation after two years. For the most part, the narrative for this summary has been taken verbatim from the Summary, Findings, and Conclusions sections of key analytic studies submitted to the NHTSA on or before May 30, 1974. This report attempts to consolidate important findings in all areas of evaluation to provide insight and perspective on the Fairfax ASAP as of June 1974.

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