Conviction rates have jumped in many areas, and the number of drunken drivers losing their licenses has skyrocketed in some states. In Illinois, for example, The New York Times reported that 92 percent of those arrested for drunken driving in 1986 lost their driving privileges, compared with only 25 percent in the early 1980s. Safety experts agree efforts to curb drunken driving have been a key factor. Even more encouraging, the proportion of fatally injured passenger vehicle drivers who were legally drunk dropped from 54 percent in 1980 to 34 percent in 1996, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety reports. A primary reason for society's progress against drunken driving is the change in public attitudes.
Studies confirm that people are more reluctant to drive after drinking.
That compares with 26 percent in 1990 and 37 percent in 1985. More Severe Penalties Sought Probably the most detailed surveys ever of public attitudes toward drunken driving were completed in 1991 and 1994 by the Gallup Organization. They were commissioned by MADD and funded by State Farm. Three years later, that figure had climbed to 64 percent. Seventy-four percent of those surveyed support police roadblocks as a means of catching impaired drivers.