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DSA Drug-Related Articles

  Feb. 25, 2005: ESTHER to

Combat Drugged Driving in Europe

     The European Police Traffic Network (TISPOL) is organizing the "Evaluation of oral fluid Screening devices by TISPOL to Harmonise European police Requirements" (ESTHER) project to standardize roadside drug testing practices in European countries.

     Participating traffic police forces include: Northern Ireland, Republic of Ireland, United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Spain, The Netherlands and Slovenia. Within the scope of the TISPOL project, operational requirements and specifications will be obtained under police conditions as part of normal traffic enforcement activities and surveillance. Authorities will stop traffic offenders and use oral fluid-based drug tests at roadside to screen for illegal drug use. Over the course of approximately one year TISPOL participants will outline a standard procedure for roadside drug tests.

[Source: Yahoo Finance]

Toking and Driving -- Who's the Real Dope? Pot smokers are a risk on the roads;  by Alan Sidorov

Drugs and Driving

This page has not yet been developed to the same extent as our section on drunk driving, but in the meanwhile please check out the following websites: 

In December 2003, the NHTSA released a report that includes a literature review of scientific studies on drugged driving published since 1980. More than 300 documents were reviewed, including research from other countries. The report covers detection and measurement of drugs in drivers, experimental research, epidemiological research, and drug-crash countermeasures. Click here for the full, online report.

The International Council on Alcohol, Drugs and Traffic Safety (ICADTS) is an independent nonprofit body whose only goal is to reduce mortality and morbidity brought about by misuse of alcohol and drugs by operators of vehicles in all modes of transportation.

Not all driver-affecting drugs are illicit. Medicines can be equally dangerous. 'Use of Impairing Medicines and Road Safety' is a report on this issue from Europa -- the European Commission.

Documents from the seminar "Illicit Drugs in Road Traffic" (from the Council of Europe's anti-drug Pompidou Group) 

UK Parliamentary Briefing (PACTS):  Illegal Drugs and Driving  

In a wide-ranging study into the links between drugs and road deaths, by Monash University in Australia, cannabis was seemingly found to reduce road accident risk in respect of fatal casualties. But the research leader, Associate Professor Olaf Drummer, cautioned that the results should not be interpreted as evidence that smoking marijuana improved people's driving skills. Read the full report here.

www.drugdrive.co.uk 

The Committee for Drugs and Traffic Safety -- Stupefiants et Conduite Automobile, Les Propositions de la SFTA; France.