With drunk drivers killing thousands each year, it is an issue worth addressing. One Westminster alum has found a way to reduce the number of drunk drivers on the road: putting breathalyzers in bars.
Jason Knott graduated from Westminster in 2010 in business finance and management. While in school, he had an idea to start a company, and now BreathAdvisor has become a reality.
The company installs kiosks in bars with breathalyzers, allowing people to test their blood alcohol level with the same type of technology police officers use.
The kiosk is operated with a touchscreen, similar to a Redbox movie machine, and is installed at no charge to the bar. To use the device, users push ‘begin,’ insert a dispensed straw, blow and get their blood alcohol content. It only costs $2 — a big difference compared to a DUI fee. If a user tests above the legal limit, there is an option to directly call a cab.
Currently, six bars — The Canyon Inn, Lumpy’s South, Wasatch Brew Pub in Park City, ClubOne and Zest — have these kiosks. In December 2012, The Canyon Inn was the first to receive the device, and the idea is continuing to spread.
Jim Stojack, owner of The Canyon Inn, has already seen the positive effects.
“Without a doubt we’ve seen its success,” he said. “There are many more cars in our parking lot, and cab services have gone up dramatically.”
He has used the device a couple times and noticed that once one person uses it, the curiosity attracts more users. He sees construction workers, business people and college-aged adults all using it. The kiosk sees the most use when college students frequent the bar on Tuesday nights.
“There will be 30 or 40 people waiting to use it,” he said.
It can also be used as an educational tool for how much your body can actually handle, because everyone is different.
Knott got the idea for the company after being pulled over and showing a blood alcohol level of .081 on the breathalyzer, barely above the legal limit of .08. The police officer should have given him a DUI, which cost about $10,000. Instead, the officer let Knott park his car at a local gas station and call a cab.
“I’d always thought of people getting DUIs and asked, ‘How could they be so irresponsible?’ Then, I went and did it myself,” he said.
He started wondering why breathalyzers are not in bars. After doing research, he found some bars had them, but none of them were really accurate.
Temperature, humidity or smoke could throw a breathalyzer off and actually cause more of a problem because it might overestimate or underestimate blood alcohol content.
Because of this inaccuracy, when Knott started telling bars about his product, they were wary at first.
“They had the cheap devices before, and people goof around with them,” he said. “They were never accurate, and everyone knew they were a joke. [The bars] wanted to make sure to provide value to their patrons.”
Knott partnered with Lifeloc Technologies in Colorado to get breathalyzers that are accurate and use the same unit as police.
Both Knott and Stojack believe this kiosk can and should be available in all bars. Many people make a decision to get behind the wheel based on whether they feel drunk, and this is what Knott wants to prevent.
Knott said he went to a bar last week and had only two beers, but he had not eaten all day. When he started walking to his car, he remembered to test himself with his own breathalyzer and saw a reading of .110. He admits he was feeling pretty good and probably would have driven, but he is trying to make it more of a routine before driving and hopes more people will test themselves before an officer can.