Everyone has been warned countless times about the dangers of drunk driving and in more recent years, texting while driving. It’s definitely true, both texting and alcohol are very dangerous things to combine with driving a car! Many people, however, may never have even heard about the extremely dangerous and pervasive trend that drugged driving has become!
A 2015 study done by the Governors Highway Safety Administration shows the extent of the drugged driving problem in the US. For the first time, there were more vehicular fatalities associated with people driving under the influence of drugs than under the influence of alcohol. Of those tested, 43% of motorists who died had drugs in their system, the report said, surpassing the number of motorists who died with alcohol in their system (37%).
There is a wide range of drugs that drugged drivers are found under the influence of when tested by authorities. For example, marijuana accounted for 35% of positive tests, amphetamines accounted for 9% and many other drugs found were prescription painkillers, anti-anxiety medication or sleeping medicine.
This epidemic is especially hard to deal with given that there aren’t really any accurate testing measurements to determine how impaired a drugged driver is. For decades, police have been able to accurately measure a driver’s level of intoxication with breathalyzer machines and blood testing but similar technology to test other forms of intoxication has yet to catch up.
Without a scientific way of measuring one’s intoxication, it’s important that driver’s take responsibility into their own hands and know when they are impaired. This means following warning signs on medicine bottles, not driving after using recreational drugs and waiting the appropriate amount of time after taking certain prescription medicine before driving. Drugged driving accidents are preventable and it’s on all of us to do what we can to keep our road ways safe!
If you or a loved one has been involved in a car accident, call our office today. Our attorneys have over a combined century of experience dealing with car accident cases in and around New York City and have achieved over $100 million in settlements and verdicts to prove our success record. We have spent countless hours analyzing car accidents and we do everything from checking red light camera footage to speaking with expert witnesses to make sure justice is served. Call our office today to figure out your next steps in your car accident. We are here to help you.
