A new study by the Governors Highway Safety Association has found that driving under the influence of drugs is about as dangerous as drunk driving. According to the new report, about 39.9 percent of drivers killed in accidents in 2013 were impaired by drug use—that’s an increase from 29.9 percent of drivers in 2005. GHSA believes this is likely due to a rapid increase in prescription drug use over the last several years, as well as the legalization of marijuana in many states.
In the report, GHSA describes the currently-existing laws against driving under the influence of drugs as “nuanced [and] difficult to enforce and prosecute.” While every state has laws against drug or alcohol-impaired driving, they “vary substantially state by state.” Fifteen states have a zero-tolerance policy for one or more drugs, while six have per se laws, which make it unlawful to drive a vehicle when drugs in a person’s system exceed a certain limit. Some states only have laws against the use of certain drugs while driving. GHSA is urging states to implement more clear and concise laws to deal with the problem.
Believe it or not, this study is one of the first of its kind on the subject. “While this report summarizes the research and data available, it also highlights how much remains unknown,” wrote Jim Hedlund, a former senior official with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and primary author of the report. “For example, we still don’t know with certainty how much of a specific drug will cause impairment or if such a relationship can even be defined.”
Unlike with alcohol, the specifics of the effects of drug use on driving have not really been studied. For that reason, it is unsurprising (but still alarming) is that many users of marijuana and other drugs are unaware of the effects they’ll have on their ability to operate a vehicle. “They believed that they can compensate for any effects of marijuana, for instance by driving more slowly or by allowing greater headways,” the report says. “They believed it is safer to drive after using marijuana than after drinking alcohol.”
In order to combat the problem, GHSA is urging police to use saliva devices, which are inexpensive and provide very fast results, to identify drivers under the influence of drugs. Even though we we’re constantly reminded not to drink and drive, it’s important that we realize it isn’t the only substance—whether our use of it is legal or not—that impairs us or people we know behind the wheel. Stay safe, collegiettes!