Florida Unveils Lower DUI Statistics Than Other States

Hello, my fellow Floridians. You are about to hear something good about yourself. You and your fellow drivers ranked 46th in the nation in terms of DUIs in 2018. Those numbers continue to drop and the community of Florida deserves a standing ovation for its commitment to driving sober.

Nonetheless, we’ve been seeing those numbers drop all across the country, especially in major metropolitan areas where rideshare companies offer cheap and accessible livery to those who are under the influence. Overall, there are only three states that have seen an increase in drunk driving rates during the rideshare revolution. Those are North Dakota, Delaware, and Washington. South Dakota led all states for drunk driving arrests per capita. Again, we see the pattern. States with large rural areas (and no access to rideshare) are not getting the same positive effects of the rideshare revolution.

Why Florida is benefiting more than other states 

Traditionally, Florida has not been associated with stellar driving. In fact, we rank near the bottom of the list in terms of our roads and the number of traffic accidents on those roads. So, the fact that fewer people are being arrested and charged with DUI is somewhat of a boon to our state.

Nonetheless, Florida is the perfect place to see the benefits of the rideshare revolution. We have a massive annual tourist population that often relies on rideshare to move about. This reduces the overall number of accidents because tourists who are driving in unfamiliar areas tend to cause more accidents than those who are familiar with the roads. Further, tourists like to party and drink. So, it often happens that many DUIs issued in Florida are actually issued to out-of-state drivers. Rideshare has reduced the overall number of drunken tourists driving on unfamiliar roadways.

Rideshare means younger drivers drive less 

In large cities like Miami, Tampa, Palm Beach, and Orlando, rideshare has become the norm for Millenials to forgo the expense of insurance, car payments, and gas with rideshare. This is especially true at night when Millenials go out to party. While drunk driving accidents still happen, statistically, they are happening less frequently and Florida has seen a greater decrease in the overall number of DUIs due in large part to the number of major cities in the state.

While rideshare has improved the frequency of DUIs, it hasn’t gone far enough, according to advocates. Buttressed by the CDC and MADD, these advocates are pushing for sobriety checkpoints among other interventions. Nonetheless, the issue is getting better over the years, not because of government intervention, but because of a revolutionary technology.

Talk to an Orlando DUI Attorney Today 

Arrested for DUI? Call the Florida DUI defense attorneys at the FL DUI Group today and allow us to manage your case. We may be able to get the charges dismissed, dropped, or reduced.

Resources:

cdc.gov/motorvehiclesafety/pdf/impaired_driving/drunk_driving_in_fl.pdf

patch.com/florida/southtampa/how-florida-dui-rates-compare-other-states

usdrugtestcenters.com/research-articles/14/worst-states-for-duis.html