DRUNK DRIVERS, HIGH DRIVERS EQUAL

Random Sampling Finds Roughly Same Number Test Positive for Alcohol,
Drugs

A random sampling of nighttime drivers in B.C. found roughly the same
number of people tested positive for drugs as alcohol, a new study
says.

"The survey found that 7.7 per cent of drivers tested positive for
drugs and 9.9 per cent had been drinking," according to the study
released Monday by the Canadian Centre for Substance Abuse (CCSA).

The centre found that marijuana and cocaine were the two most
frequently found substances in the survey of 2,840 vehicles last year
in Vancouver, Saanich, Abbotsford, Prince George and Kelowna.

Working with police, researchers asked drivers to give voluntary
breath and saliva samples to test for drugs and alcohol.

The results are in a study titled Alcohol and Drug Use Among Drivers:
British Columbia Roadside Survey 2010.

Yasmina Pepa of the CCSA pointed out that while drivers tested
positive for alcohol more on weekends and late at night, positive drug
tests were more evenly distributed across all survey nights and times.

She said drugs and driving is a more complex issue than drinking and
driving.

In a second survey released Monday, Canadian Centre for Substance
Abuse researchers examined 14,000 driver fatalities, which indicated
37 per cent had alcohol in their system and 33 per cent tested
positive for drugs.

While there has been much education about drinking and driving, Pepa
said, there needs to be more awareness that a driver can be impaired
by drugs.

In suspected alcohol impaired-driving cases, drivers are required to
provide a breath sample to determine the blood alcohol content.

Testing for drug impairment is more complex. Drivers are required to
perform physical tests of impairment (Field Sobriety Test).

If evidence of impairment is detected, the driver must accompany the
officer to the police station and proceed to be examined by a
specially trained Drug Recognition Expert (DRE).

There are more than 100 pieces of information collected by the DRE,
who then makes a call about whether a suspect is impaired by drugs,
and if so, what drug category.

About 600 officers are trained across Canada to detect impairment by
drugs.