01025815

Component

http://onlinepubs.trb.org...nepubs/circulars/ec096.pdf

Alcohol is known to increase crash risk, but the evidence for other drugs is much less clear. Studies have been hampered by measurement issues and the small proportions of drivers found with drugs other than alcohol, especially drugs in the absence of alcohol. Cannabis and benzodiazepines (BZDs) are the two drugs other than alcohol most often found among crash-involved drivers. Both have been found to impair driving skills measured in the laboratory, but there are few adequate studies assessing their contribution to crashes, and these studies have mixed results. The weight of the evidence suggests that BZDs increase crash risk, in particular long-acting BZDs prescribed for medical use, at least for the first weeks of use. Further studies of cannabis and BZDs are needed to clarify their contribution to the highway safety problem.

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01025806

English

pp 12-21

2006-5

Transportation Research Circular

Drugs and Traffic: A Symposium

Web

References; Tables (1)

Drugged drivers; Highway safety; Marijuana; Risk analysis; Traffic crashes

Benzodiazepines

Highways; Safety and Human Factors; I83: Accidents and the Human Factor

TRIS, TRB

Jun 15 2006 7:33PM

• Commentary on Cannabis and Crash Risk: Concentration Effect Relation
• Commentary on History of DWI Enforcement: What Does It Tell Us About DUID Enforcement?
• Commentary on Legal Framework for Dealing with Drugs in Traffic
• Commentary on Legal Framework for Dealing with Drugs in Traffic
• Commentary on Medicinal Drugs and Driving
• Commentary on Medicinal Drugs: Critical Review of Present Knowledge and Statements for Discussion
• Commentary on the Risks Posed by Drugs in Traffic
• Commentary on the Risks Posed by Drugs in Traffic
• Commentary on Variability Among Epidemiological Studies of Drugs and Driving
• Drug Effects and Their Significance for Traffic Safety
• Drug-Impaired Driving: Improving Integration of Toxicology, Technology, and Enforcement
• Drugs and Traffic: A Symposium. Overview and Summary
• European Union Research Project IMMORTAL: The Risk of Drink and Drug Driving—Results of a Case-Control Study Conducted in the Netherlands
• Legal Framework for Dealing with Drugs in Traffic
• Medicinal Drugs: Critical Review of Present Knowledge and Statements for Discussion