Cannabis & Cars A Fatal Mix....

[Guest Urbanhog]

URL: http://www.mapinc.org/drugnews/v02/n1801/a10.html

Newshawk: Niall Young

Pubdate: Tue, 24 Sep 2002

Source: West Australian (Australia)

Copyright: 2002 West Australian Newspapers Limited

Contact: letters@wanews.com.au

Website: http://www.thewest.com.au

Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/495

Author: Mark Mallabone

 

 

CANNABIS, CARS A FATAL MIX

 

DRIVERS who smoked cannabis before getting behind the wheel were six times more likely to die in a crash than other road users, a parliamentary committee has been told.

 

Monash University forensic medicine expert Olaf Drummer said yesterday it was myth that stoned motorists were relatively safe because they drove slowly. Fatal smashes among this group caused by excessive speed were not uncommon.

 

"It is certainly not a safe drug in relation to road trauma," Professor Drummer told the House of Representatives standing committee on family and community affairs.

 

He unveiled an analysis which showed that drivers with relatively high levels of cannabis in their bloodstream ( more than 5ng/mL of tetrahydrocannabinol ) were 6.6 times more likely than others to die on the roads.

 

Only very drunk drivers were more vulnerable. Those with a blood-alcohol content higher than 0.20 were 20 times more likely to die.

 

In a coronial study of almost 3400 driver deaths during 1990-99, including 757 in WA, Professor Drummer found almost 30 per cent of victims recorded a blood-alcohol content above the legal limit.

 

A further 26 per cent tested positive for mind-altering ( psychotropic ) drugs, including 14 per cent who had recently used cannabis.

 

Other commonly detected drugs were opiates ( 4.4 per cent ), stimulants ( 3.8 per cent ) and benzodiazepines ( 3.6 per cent ).

 

Professor Drummer told the committee that drivers who used stimulants such as amphetamines were 2.3 times more likely than others to die.

 

the death rate was much higher ( 8.8 times ) among stimulant-using truck drivers.

 

interestingly, heroin use did not appear to be strongly linked to unsafe driving. Heroin users were 1.4 times more likely to die but those who had taken multiple mood-altering drugs were 5.4 times more likely to die.

 

The combination of alcohol and mood-altering drugs was particularly dangerous.

 

Professor Drummer's research appears to support moves by WA authorities, revealed last week, to investigate the possibility of testing drivers for drugs other than alcohol.

 

The WA Police Service has made preliminary inquiries about getting portable roadside saliva testing kits.

 

Victorian police are preparing to start a similar program.

 

And The West Australian understands that the Government's drink and drug driving task force has made a submission that legislation be drafted to help catch the rising number of people driving while affected by drugs.

[boe~pimp]

i've just got a few things to say about the report.

 

"He unveiled an analysis which showed that drivers with relatively high levels of cannabis in their bloodstream ( more than 5ng/mL of tetrahydrocannabinol ) were 6.6 times more likely than others to die on the roads."

 

more likely to? at this point i was wondering where the physical proof was...

and then i read on.

 

127.76 out of those 3400 who died in accidents were under the influence of cannabis at the time.

 

more people die than that due to BEING killed by drunk drivers, when the drunk drivers usually live.

 

i think this all comes back to individual tolerance of cannabis and responsibility.

i enjoy driving after smoking a small dose of cannabis, not very far, (although that doesn't make it ok) and i've never had a problem. when i get tired, i don't drive, when i've been drinking i don't drive.

my licence is worth too much to me.

once again i think it comes back to the "lets get blazed off our heads and go for a drive" breed of irresponsible weed smokers.

 

just my point of view anyway.

however i would like to see more feedback on the matter

 

~Boe~

[Oz]

I've been driving for over a decade, most of it stoned and have only ever had 3 minor crashes (none my fault), funnily enough every crash has been while I was straight...

[Guest Urbanhog]

Yeah I argee with you joe-pimp, it's just I had few bad experiences being a passenger of some real dickhead drivers...., in fact I also believe its possible that stoned drivers are better than drunk drivers IN some cases, seems stoned drivers seem to be more "cautionous" again, as joe-pimp said it's all depending on the driver's tolerence and all that stuff....

[boe~pimp]

Boe~Pimp

yer the way the roads are today i hardly ever get into a car with anyone i don't trust with my life.

because when you get into a car, it really is your life your trusting them with.

~Boe~

[pipeman]

hey ozstoner, of course there are no absolutes. A cautious stoned driver is probably more safe than a wreckless/unskilled straight driver.

 

but no matter what your tolerance/experience is, being stoned will reduce your co-ordination and reflexes, so it becomes a matter of diminishing your ability to avoid accidents caused by others.

 

It may never happen, but I couldn't live with myself if a pedestrian jumped out in front of my car and I ran them down while stoned, wondering if I could've avoided them if I was straight.

 

A friend of mind broke a kids legs on a bike while speeding. Thankfully no permanent damage was done. But he went through a pretty hard time dealing with it, especially the first day when we didn't know whether or not the kid would be alright. He wasn't stoned or drunk, just speeding. There was a good 10m of skid marks before the hit, and everyone agreed that if he had been doing the right speed the accident would never have happened.

 

Also remember, just because a lot of people think things are fine doesn't necessarily make it so. There was a time people thought smoking tobacco was good for you, backed up by the lay opinion of millions that claimed they felt better and lived to a ripe old age smoking the stuff.

 

Same applies with driving stoned, just because many do it in safety doesn't make it right.

[nouseforaname]

hey,

Pipemans pretty much hit it on the head, only thing i can think that may totally throw this all out is a drivers state of mind. I personally know alot of straighty 180s and they all have really good jobs,cars etc. But most of them are more reckless on the road, one is a estate agent and his driving can change dramatically by how the job goes. Main reason he does it is he can afford the fines but as hes straight ..does it make it right or better than being stoned while doing it?

No drugs or alcohol but just as reckless.. A car is a deadly weapon in the wrong hands but whos to say day to day if your mentally stable enough to drive just my thoughts

[BlackBeauty]

- did u post this after you read that i smoke and drive? well, like boe~pimp, I won't drive long distances nor set out specificaly to get ripped then go for a drive. more like a munchies run...other than that, it's driving home from work on a friday arvo with a J ::

 

Been driving for 10 years, I don't touch alcohol and have never had an accident. Straight or not.

 

If they want improvement on road toll statistics, instate zero tolerance to drink driving. No more 0.05. 0.00 just like for the poor P-platers.

[Tom]

Yeah, I drive 0.00 alcohol, I don't drive stoned either. I have a friend that I make sure has had a few cones before she drives me anywhere, her "straight" driving scares me shitless.

 

[BlackBeauty]

lmao@Tom

 

fair enuff

 

it certainly changes my mood when driving...from an agressive hoon to a mellow cruiser

[Pete]

My mate tops 100 driving with his knee while ripping a bong.. not really related but its kinda funny.. he's neva been involved in a crash.