Drugs behind more fatal crashes than alcohol – study

NewsHub 14 June 2018
Family First Comment: Expect this rate to go even higher if we go soft on drug laws.
www.SayNopeToDope.nz

A new Automobile Association study has found people on drugs are causing more fatal crashes than those behind the wheel drunk.

In 2017, 79 drivers involved in fatal crashes were found to be under the influence of drugs, compared to only 14 in 2013, Stuff reports.

Seventy drivers were found to be over the alcohol limit or refused to be tested.

The AA says the figures show a need for roadside testing of drivers for drug intoxication, as the current methods are insufficient.

Right now an officer must have strong cause to test for drugs and will then take the driver to a station for a “walk and turn” test.

“The current system almost needs a driver to be sitting in the car with drugs on the seat next to them to get tested, and the current test takes up a huge amount of an officer’s time,” AA road safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen told Stuff.

But the Government isn’t quite sure about roadside tests, saying there are challenges around implementing the preferred method of saliva testing.
READ MORE: https://www.newshub.co.nz/home/new-zealand/2018/06/drugs-behind-more-fatal-crashes-than-alcohol-study.html

Drug-impaired drivers now involved in more fatal crashes than drink-drivers
Stuff co.nz 14 June 2018
Drug-impaired drivers are now involved in more fatal crashes on Kiwi roads than drink-drivers, new research shows.

A study by the Automobile Association (AA) found 79 drivers who were involved in fatal crashes last year later tested positive for drugs, compared to 70 who were above the legal alcohol limit or refused to be tested.

It is thought to be the first time that drugs have overtaken alcohol in this statistic.

In 2013, the number of drug-impaired drivers involved in fatal crashes was just 14, compared with 53 who were intoxicated or avoided tests.

Drivers who had taken prescription medications above recommended levels, or those known to impair driving, were included in the figures. But the two most commonly-detected drugs (excluding alcohol) were cannabis and methamphetamine.
READ MORE: https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/crime/104666411/drugimpaired-drivers-now-involved-in-more-fatal-crashes-than-drinkdrivers