New data shows impaired driving in Ontario did not increase after legalization of recreational cannabis

Emma Spears - thegrowthop.com Posted 5 years ago
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Impaired driving concerns were a major argument against recreational weed in the months leading up to federal cannabis legalization in Canada–but as it turns out, those fears may have been overstated.

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Data collected by the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), North West Region suggests that cannabis legalization hasn’t had much of an effect on area roads, as reported by Kenora Online.

The OPP reports that there were 109 impaired driving charges laid in the district from January 1 to March 1, 2019. Compared to last year’s number, which was 104, the feared spike in drug driving incidents since legalization rolled into town seems to have been misguided.

Interestingly, cannabis legalization may have led to an improvement in the number of alcohol-impaired driving incidence. During the aforementioned three-month period, officers laid only 55 charges in 2019, whereas in 2018, the incidences in that same time period came out to 103.

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The OPP does not track cannabis-related driving charges, specifically. Instances are categorized as drug-impaired (under which a cannabis charge would fall), alcohol-impaired, or drug and alcohol-impaired.

The OPP does not track cannabis-related driving charges, specifically. Instances are categorized as drug-impaired (under which a cannabis charge would fall), alcohol-impaired, or drug and alcohol-impaired.

The Ministry of Transportation suggests measure to avoid drug driving, including having “a plan to get home safely,” asking your healthcare provider about drug side effects, reading about the drug you are taking, and asking a medical professional about any possible interactions between drugs.

Drug-driving laws have come under scrutiny in recent months, as tests for intoxicating cannabis component, THC, aren’t always accurate (especially true for those administered post-mortem), tolerance is extremely subjective and cannabis can stay in the system for weeks after it has been consumed.

 

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