Driving under the influence of drugs
Summary of research and projects in UK
British Medical Association
- Driving impairment through alcohol and other drugs (1996)
-The misuse of drugs (1997)
-Therapeutic uses of cannabis (1997) - read more here
- The British National Formulary (BNF), produced jointly by the BMA and Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain, provides information on appropriate labelling of drugs that may affect driving ability and on the duty of those prescribing/dispensing drugs to inform patients of such effects. Go to the website here.
- In July 2001 the BMJ - go to the website here - published a news extra item, BMA calls for action on 'drug driving'.
Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency
Go to the website here
Patient information leaflets: Under the Medicine Amendment Regulations (1992), pharmaceutical companies are required to indicate in patient information leaflets whether the (prescribed) drugs potentially have an effect on the ability to drive vehicles or operate machinery.
UK Government: Department of Health
In March 2001, the Department of Health responded to the Advisory Council on the Misuse of Drugs (ACMD) report into the misuse of drugs and drug related deaths. The Department of Health recommended that further research should be carried out on the relationship between drug misuse and road traffic accidents.
Parliamentary Advisory Council for Transport Safety (PACTS)
PACTS held a conference in October 2002 entitled 'Fit to Drive? Impairment Through Drink and Drugs'
Go to the website here.
Local action in UK
- Campaign in Wokingham
In August 2001, Wokingham District Council and Wokingham Community Safety Plan launched the first ever drug driving safety campaign. The campaign was launched in two parts. The first part was aimed at illegal/recreational users. They plan to launch the second phase early in 2002. This time they will be focussing on the dangers of taking prescription and over the counter drugs and then driving without reading the guidance accompanying the medication or considering the effect it may have on general awareness or reaction times.
Press release - Drug drivers to get safety message - read more here
- North East Lincolnshire Council
The North East Lincolnshire Council website has road safety advice for drivers detailing the potential problems associated with taking illegal and prescribed drugs and driving.
Go to the website here
Department for Transport Local government and the Regions (DTLR)
Road safety strategy - read more here
- The DTLR produced the Government’s road safety strategy and casualty reduction targets for 2010 in March 2000. This outlines, amongst other things, the government’s action plan for tackling drug driving.
- 2002: "Antidepressants and road safety – a literature review and commentary".
This review concludes that more research is required to investigate the effects of new generation antidepressant drugs on driving performance and accident risk.
- May 2000: Cannabis and Driving – A literature review and commentary.
The report concludes that cannabis consumption is frequent and increasing. The report lays out key research objectives to improve current knowledge on the effect of cannabis on driving.
- December 2000: The influence of cannabis on driving (published by TRL),
The report concludes that cannabis has a measurable effect on psychomotor performance, particularly on tracking ability.
- December 2000: Recognising drug use and drug related impairment in drivers (published by TRL).
In this report the effectiveness of Drug Influence Recognition Techniques (DIRT) and Field Impairment Tests (FIT) are evaluated using Strathclyde police officers. The training and implementation of roadside techniques for assessing driver impairment are found to be worthwhile.
- December 2000: The influence of cannabis on driving (published by TRL),
- Incidence of drugs and alcohol in road accident fatalities, August 2000. The report considers possible reasons behind increases in detection of drugs and the implications for road safety (published by TRL)
DTLR safety reports - read more here
- The Road Safety Division of the DTLR has ongoing projects and plans for future work that relate to drugs and driving.
Scottish Executive
Go to the website here
In June 1997, the Scottish Road Safety Campaign established a Drugs Driving Working Group to assess the situation and to inform and recommend campaign initiatives to combat the problem of driving while under the influence of non-prescribed drugs. As a result the Scottish Executive commissioned a two-part project. The first stage to establish the prevalence of drug driving in Scotland, and a separate second stage, to carry out qualitative work with drug users about their attitudes to drugs and driving. In 2001 the Scottish Executive published :
Recreational drugs and driving: prevalence survey - read more here and Recreational drug use and driving: a qualitative study.
Disclaimer
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