"Fatal Road Crashes Involving Marijuana Double After State Legalizes Drug"

[Malachi256]

A study from "the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, publicly supported charitable research and educational organization. Dedicated to saving lives and reducing injuries on our roads, the Foundation’s mission is to prevent crashes and save lives through research and education about traffic safety."

Here's the article: http://newsroom.aaa.com/2016/05/fata...egalizes-drug/

Fatal crashes involving drivers who recently used marijuana doubled in Washington after the state legalized the drug

I hope the extra tax revenue is worth it.

[Jaelian]

After reading the article, it should be the same principle set for alcohol - there should be a legalized limit, each person reacting differently is a null point as the same applies with alcohol, and yet there is still a limit set.

Taking any sort of drug (yes even prescribed ones) or alcohol and getting behind the wheel of a car is stupid and selfish of that person, accidents are fatailities are a high risk in these situations and it needs controlling, regardless of its legal status.

[Sunseeker]

The study even explicitly states that there's no science demonstrating marijuana reliably impairs your driving at any specific level of THC in the bloodstream. Of course if more people are using it then there will be more accidents where it is involved, but the fact that someone had THC in their bloodstream does not mean their driving was impaired or that the marijuana was responsible for the assident.

[Kathandira]

The study even explicitly states that there's no science demonstrating marijuana reliably impairs your driving at any specific level of THC in the bloodstream. Of course if more people are using it then there will be more accidents where it is involved, but the fact that someone had THC in their bloodstream does not mean their driving was impaired or that the marijuana was responsible for the assident.

Indeed. It stays in your system for a long period of time. I could have smoked 3 days ago, and it would still show up.

[Ripster42]

A study from "the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety is a 501(c)(3) not-for-profit, publicly supported charitable research and educational organization. Dedicated to saving lives and reducing injuries on our roads, the Foundation’s mission is to prevent crashes and save lives through research and education about traffic safety."

Here's the article: http://newsroom.aaa.com/2016/05/fata...egalizes-drug/



I hope the extra tax revenues are worth it.

Let me know when it reaches alcohol's level.

Also, "Recently used marijuana" is a bullshit term as stated in the article. Regular users show up as "recently used" in blood tests for up to a week after they stop smoking.

[RampageBW1]

What a click baity article, would anyone even care if Weed wasn't involved?

Oh no, intoxication impairs driving, big news! We've known that ever since Drunk Drivers became a thing. Next you'll be telling me that water is wet.

[Ripster42]

What a click baity article, would anyone even care if Weed wasn't involved?

Oh no, intoxication impairs driving, big news! We've known that ever since Drunk Drivers became a thing. Next you'll be telling me that water is wet.

It's not even that intoxication impairs driving, but literally just a test that more people in washington are smoking regularly.

[Pipebomb]

Was marijuana directly the fault of the fatal accidents though? THC can remain above the limit of detection (0.3 ng/ml) in the blood of regular users for up to a month following cessation, although it varies by individual.

Link to study "Impact of prolonged cannabinoid excretion in chronic daily cannabis smokers' blood on per se drugged driving laws."
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/23449702

[THE Bigzoman]

The study even explicitly states that there's no science demonstrating marijuana reliably impairs your driving at any specific level of THC in the bloodstream. Of course if more people are using it then there will be more accidents where it is involved, but the fact that someone had THC in their bloodstream does not mean their driving was impaired or that the marijuana was responsible for the assident.

This was my initial reaction as well.

Is it possible that the users in the sample used marijuana so frequently that a good THC level was in their system + smoking a joint behind the wheel?

Because the only way I could see pot directly influencing a crash is if someone is trying to light up and drive at the same time (unless it was laced or something)

[Gheld]

We've had this thread before.

Here's how it plays out.

Marijuana doesn't impair your driving. If anything it makes you a better driver because you're paranoid
But isn't some measure of confidence an important part of safe driving?

Look man, no study has ever shown it to have a negative impact on driving.
*links half a dozen studies showing it to have varying negative impacts on driving.*
Those studies don't count because something something *lunatic rambling*. I know a guy who took 5 weeds and drove just fine.

Anybody with half a brain knows that driving under the influence of various substances, legal or otherwise, is just a bad idea. For everyone else there's cognitive dissonance. And there's no cure for it.

[Deleted]

Useless data. Was there an overall increase in fatal road crashed after the legalization?

[THE Bigzoman]

We've had this thread before.

Here's how it plays out.

Marijuana doesn't impair your driving. If anything it makes you a better driver because you're paranoid
But isn't some measure of confidence an important part of safe driving?

Look man, no study has ever shown it to have a negative impact on driving.
*links half a dozen studies showing it to have varying negative impacts on driving.*
Those studies don't count because something something *lunatic rambling*. I know a guy who took 5 weeds and drove just fine.

Anybody with half a brain knows that driving under the influence of various substances, legal or otherwise, is just a bad idea. For everyone else there's cognitive dissonance. And there's no cure for it.

People could probably make a case that stimulants makes better drivers because people using stimulants have keener awareness on the road.

[caervek]

In the UK drink and drugs all come under the crime of "driving under the influence", this applies to legal drugs too and the are many prescriptions that require people to temporarily surrender their licence.

Basically anything that impairs your ability to drive will get you in trouble when behind the wheel, be it alcohol, marijuana or Nytol.

[Flurryfang]

Something like that is bound to happend, when you realease an intoxicating substance into the state. But i really do think it is such a small amount of accidents, that it is having a null effect. People still crahsed cars while being on marijuana before it was legal.

[Gheld]

People could probably make a case that stimulants makes one a better driver because people using stimulants have keener awareness on the road.

Not necessarily. "keener awareness" or "hyper awareness" can also lead to "hyper distracted".

I'm sure you guys have a million anecdotes of drugged driving not leading to any accidents.

But here's the reality; Neither do most cases of drunk driving. A good 95% of the time somebody jumps behind the wheel of a car with blood alcohol above the legal limit, they will make it home safely without incident. It's still an idiotic thing to do though.

[zebreck]

The obvious solution is "don't drive while you're high" the obvious problem is legislating that in any meaningful way since the half-life of marijuana in your body is drastically higher than alcohol. I'm not going to fail a breathalyzer if I got drunk yesterday, much less last week. Clearly we need some sort of superior detection method, then we can just treat it like alcohol and have done.

[TZucchini]

As others have mentioned, there's no breathalyzer for THC that can determine impairment at the time of the accident.

[Kathandira]

I'd be more concerned with people who Text and drive, and people who might be stoned.

[Gorgodeus]

The study even explicitly states that there's no science demonstrating marijuana reliably impairs your driving at any specific level of THC in the bloodstream. Of course if more people are using it then there will be more accidents where it is involved, but the fact that someone had THC in their bloodstream does not mean their driving was impaired or that the marijuana was responsible for the assident.

Are you really going to try to say that MJ does not impair ones functions? Give me a damn break. It is the entire reason people use it, in most cases.

[Kathandira]

Are you really going to try to say that MJ does not impair ones functions? Give me a damn break. It is the entire reason people use it, in most cases.

It depends. For example, I can do somethings just as well, and other things not very well. Might also have to do with experience with it as well.

All in all, there should definitely be restrictions, since all people are different.