Combating Impaired Driving

It is illegal everywhere in America to drive under any influence and for good reason. 

Alcohol is not the only substance that affects the way you drive. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration posted a few of the ways substances can impair driving 

• “Alcohol, marijuana, and other drugs impair the ability to drive because they slow coordination, judgment, and reaction times.
• Cocaine and methamphetamine can make drivers more aggressive and reckless.
• Using two or more drugs at the same time, including alcohol, can amplify the impairing effects of each drug a person has consumed.
• Some prescription and over-the-counter medicines can cause extreme drowsiness, dizziness, and other side effects. Read and follow all warning labels before driving, and note that warnings against ‘operating heavy machinery’ include driving a vehicle.”

They reported that there has been a, “48% increase in weekend nighttime driviers testing positive for THC from 2007 to 2013-2014”.

Misconceptions that marijuana doesn’t impair you are false. 

“Research shows that marijuana impairs motor skills, lane tracking and cognitive functions (Robbe et al., 1993; Moskowitz, 1995; Hartman & Huestis, 2013). A 2015 study on driving after smoking cannabis stated that THC in marijuana also hurts a driver’s ability to multitask, a critical skill needed behind the wheel. “

This issue has not been taken lightly. In fact, “The U.S. Department of Transportation’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) announced a new $2.3 million grant program today to help combat drug-impaired driving on America’s roads.”