‘Driving high is driving impaired’, CAA says
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Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 14/10/2018 (1991 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.
Think smoking pot makes you a better, more careful driver? Think again, says a study commissioned by the Canadian Automobile Association.
It tested 36 recreational cannabis users ages 18 to 24 in a driving simulator between May 7 and July 5, and found young Canadians are more at risk of a vehicle crash even five hours after inhaling cannabis.
“The bottom line is that we know driving high is driving impaired,” said Erika Miller of CAA Manitoba.
Previous CAA polling found one in five Canadians thought they were better drivers when stoned than sober, said Miller. A ground-breaking study conducted by the Research Institute of the McGill University Health Centre in Montreal shows that assumption is wrong.
The researchers used a state-of-the-art simulator that looked at the driver’s attention and concentration while steering, braking and avoiding obstacles in a series of complicated driving experiences, and how they responded in the first five hours after using cannabis.
The trial was designed to determine to what extent (and for how long) driving-related performance is compromised after a usual dose of inhaled cannabis and whether there are associations between self-reported perceptions of driving ability, driving safety and drug effect and driving-related performance in young recreational cannabis users.
The research found performance declined significantly in key areas such as reaction time — even five hours after inhaling the equivalent of less than one typical joint. The participants’ driving performance deteriorated as soon as they were exposed to the kinds of distractions common on the road.
“A large proportion of participants didn’t feel safe to drive after being being put to the test,” said Miller.
CAA is trying to get the word out against driving while high, she said.
“We’re really encouraging Canadians — especially young Canadians — to treat cannabis the same way you treat alcohol consumption,” Miller said. “Make sure you have a safe way to get home.
“Take a (ride-sharing service), a taxi or have a designated driver — or wait it out until you feel better, at least five or six hours.”
carol.sanders@freepress.mb.ca
Carol Sanders
Legislature reporter
After 20 years of reporting on the growing diversity of people calling Manitoba home, Carol moved to the legislature bureau in early 2020.