W. Va. Code § 17C-5D-1: Purpose.

The purpose of this article is to avoid the imposition of sanctions against this state and the loss of federal-aid highway construction funds under section 1405(a) of the federal Transportation Equity Act for the Twenty-first Century (23 U.S.C. §154), as amended, which requires states to enact and enforce a law that prohibits the consumption of an alcoholic beverage or the possession of an open alcoholic beverage container in the passenger area of a motor vehicle that is located on a public highway or the right-of-way adjacent to a public highway.