Reducing impaired driving through the identification of Repeat Target Vehicles: A case study

One of the most persistent groups of impaired drivers that are seemingly unaffected by social pressure, moral appeals, and the fear of arrest is that of the repeat impaired driver. This smaller group accounts for a disproportionate number of all impaired driving trips, often with high blood alcohol contents. New approaches are needed to identify and deal with the repeat impaired driver.

We propose a method based on the discovery that almost 10% of all impaired driving calls for service involve repeat vehicles. Using the number of times a vehicle appears in our data, the average time to repeat, and the personality characteristics of the repeat impaired driver, we are able to create a comprehensive and predictive description of a Repeat Target Vehicle (RTV).

Our method provides an opportunity to explore new and innovative crime reduction strategies that were never before possible.