- 77 percent (665) of the 862 DUIDs involved marijuana
- 40 percent (347) of the 862 DUIDs involved marijuana only
Legalization and Road Safety: Looking to the Recent Past
Earlier this year, the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction concluded that within our country “a substantial proportion of drug impaired drivers are going undetected.”
Do you wonder if priority is being given to maintaining an election promise, or to legalization during the 42nd week of the year, over roadside safety?
If the best way to predict the future is to look at the past, let’s take a moment and look to the recent past in Colorado and Washington state.
In the United States, the Rocky Mountain High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (RMHIDTA), a program of the U.S. Office of National Drug Control Policy, has been studying the impact of the 2012 legalization of cannabis in Colorado.
One of the many areas it studies is the impact of legalization on impaired driving rates and traffic fatalities.
In its fourth annual report, released in September, 2016, the RMHIDTA released some very interesting information.
Not up to reading the full 180 page report? It’s a pretty interesting read! Below are just some of the findings.
In 2013, marijuana-related traffic deaths in Colorado increased by 62 percent (from 71 to 115 persons).
Since 2013, there has been a 67 percent increase in operators testing positive for marijuana who were involved in a fatal traffic collision.
During that same time, all traffic related deaths increased by 11 per cent.
In 2015, still only 49 percent of operators involved in Colorado traffic deaths were tested for the presence of drugs.
Out of those who were tested, approximately one in four tested positive for marijuana.
The 2015 Colorado State Patrol DUID (driving under the influence of drugs) Program data reveals that: