TRIAL SUCCESS FOR ROADSIDE DRUG TESTS

MOTORISTS could face roadside tests for "drug-driving" following a huge rise
in the number of deaths on the road involving drugs.

Six police forces have been using the tests in pilot schemes. Now a report
from an influential group of police, doctors and road safety experts - to be
published in the autumn - will urge the Government to introduce the tests
nationally. The report will reveal that a growing number of drivers involved
in fatal accidents are taking a "cocktail" of hard drugs.

If the tests are approved, motorists who commit a traffic offence or drive
erratically will first have to take the existing breathalyser test for
drink-driving. If this proves negative but the police officer suspects that
the driver may be under the influence of drugs, the motorist will be asked
to undergo a series of five tests.

These are:

The straight line test: the driver walks nine steps along a straight line,
turns and walks back. The eye test: a person's pupils normally dilate and
contract in response to changes in light, but can react differently if drugs
have been taken. The divided attention or Romburg test: the driver tips his
head back, closes his eyes, and guesses when 30 seconds have elapsed. This
is hard for people under the influence of drugs. Police will also look for
signs of swaying. The one-leg test: the driver stands on one leg and counts
for 30 seconds. The process is repeated for the other leg. Motorists
affected by drugs often fall over during this test. The nose test: drivers
stand, feet together, close their eyes and touch the end of their noses.
Harder than it seems when under the influence of drugs.

Drivers who fail the tests will be arrested and a police surgeon will assess
whether they are "impaired" either by drugs or by a medical condition. Blood
or urine samples will establish the presence of drugs in the body.

A police spokesman from Strathclyde where tests are being extended, said:
"The reaction from the public was good, but the tests were not always easy
to carry out in pouring rain on the motorway at 2am. More research is needed."

At present police have no powers to make drivers take any of the drugs-drive
tests - unlike the breathalyser for drink-drivers, where refusing to take
the test is an offence in itself. However, drivers who refuse can be
arrested on suspicion of driving while impaired by drugs and then undergo
similar tests by a police doctor. Driving while under the influence of drugs
carries the same penalties as drink-driving. Police do not distinguish
between medical or illegal drugs since the prime concern is road safety.

The report, compiled by groups including the motoring organisation AA, the
British Medical Association, the Association of Chief Police Officers and
the parliamentary advisory council on road safety, is also expected to urge
the Government to continue research into a "drugsalyser", a roadside device
that would detect drugs in motorists' bodies and act as a deterrent.

The report will call for urgent action because the number of drivers and
passengers who have died in road accidents after taking drugs has risen from
three per cent to 18 per cent of the total in the past 15 years. A survey by
the car-leasing company Lex shows that 500,000 road-users regularly take
cannabis, 250,000 take speed and 100,000 are regularly under the influence
of ecstasy, cocaine or heroin.

Police forces, backed by the Government, have already tested two
drugs-detection tests. The first was a "sweat test" in which pads are wiped
across the driver's forehead and the perspiration examined for the presence
of specific drugs such as cannabis, cocaine, heroin or amphetamines. The
second test is a saliva check which can detect drugs in the body but cannot
identify specific drugs.

There is some concern that detection tests are unreliable, as many
substances can show false positives. For example, poppy seeds used in bagels
and cakes have been found to show a positive for morphine. It is also more
difficult to fix "acceptable" levels of drugs than it is for alcohol, as the
same drugs can affect people differently. The tests have been successfully
used in America for two decades.