Cannabis is the most commonly used illicit drug in Australia and is used by a wide section of the community, particularly younger people. Contrary to data from the early to mid-1990s, recent Victorian crash data suggest that the use of cannabis is associated with elevated culpability in crashes. It is therefore timely to draw together the international literature in regard to the issues around cannabis use and road safety. This report reviews the key issues concerning cannabis and road safety, including: patterns of cannabis use; the prevalence of cannabis in the driver population, drivers suspected of driving under the influence, and drivers killed or injured; effects on simulator and on-road driving; detection of cannabis in bodily samples; and measurement of impairment using performance tests such as the Standardised Field Sobriety Test. The report highlights the current gaps in knowledge and documents the specific areas of research that need to be pursued in future studies in order to further enhance our understanding of how cannabis influences driving skills. (Author/publisher)
Abstract