The legal minimum drinking age in texas: Effects of an increase from 18 to 19

Abstract

Effects on motor vehicle crash involvement of raising the legal drinking age in Texas from 18 to 19 were examined, using an interrupted time-series design. Rates of single-vehicle-nighttime (SVN) and non-SVN crashes per 100,000 licensed drivers from 1978 through 1984 were examined for three levels of crash severity (serious injury, minor injury, property damage only) and four age groups (16-17, 18, 19-20, 21 and over). Resul's revealed significant reductions in SVN crashes for the 18-year-old target population across all levels of crash severity: serious injury, down 10.8 % ; minor injury, down 14.3% ; and property damage only, down 12.8%. In comparison, no significant changes in S/N crashes among drivers age 21 and over were found. When the effects of macroeconomic conditions on crash rates were controlled statistically, no change in the estimated effect of the legal age law was seen. It is clear that the l-year increase in legal age in Texas had a significant effect on youth crash involvement. Over half of the states in the U. S. lowered their minimum legal drinking age between 1970 and 1973. After these changes, several studies found significant increases in youth alcohol-related traffic crashes, although

Preventing Impaired Driving Using Alcohol Policy

“…Klepp et al (1996) found that implementation of the uniform minimum legal drinking age of 21 in the United States reduced the overall prevalence of drinking and driving, especially among those young people who had a few drinks. Other studies (e.g., Saffer & Grossman, 1987a, 1987bWagenaar, 1981Wagenaar, , 1986Wagenaar & Maybee, 1986) indicate that raising the minimum legal drinking age from 18 to 21 years decreased single vehicle nighttime crashes involving young drivers by 11% to 16% at all levels of crash severity. A 13% reduction in fatal nighttime crashes involving young drivers has also been reported in a study of 26 states when a higher drinking age law was enacted (DuMouchel et al, 1987).…”

Preventing sales of alcohol to minors: results from a community trial

“…These studies routinely have shovra that lowering the drinking age increases adolescent drinking and driving whereas raising the drinking age decreases adolescent drinking and driving (e.g. Cook & Tauchen, 1984;Smith, et al, 1984;Arnold, 1985;Wagenaar, 1986aWagenaar, , 1986bSaffer & Grossman, 1987). Similarly, studies show significant decreases in selfreponed drinking and purchases of alcoholic beverages by adolescents when the drinking age is raised (Williams & Lillis, 1986Coate & Grossman, 1988).…”

Alcohol Availability and Injury: The Role of Local Outlet Densities

“…Typically, by using automobile-related fatalities as outcome measures, this research has found that increased availability in the form of lower minimum drinking ages and lower prices was related to increased traffic fatalities (Wagenaar, 1986). For example, one such study (Wagenaar and Maybee, 1986) used time series techniques to demonstrate a decrease in all levels of traffic injury among 18-to 19-yearolds in the wake of an increase in the minimum drinking age in Texas. Additionally, increased physical alcohol availability has been linked to higher arrest rates for public drunkenness and drunk driving and to higher rates of cirrhosis mortality Watts, 1982, 1989;Rush et al, 1986).…”