DRUGS AND HIGHWAY SAFETY: 1980

The report presents findings of a study to describe (1) present knowledge about the relationship between drug use by drivers and highway safety, and (2) efforts to detect and prevent drug-impaired driving. Past, ongoing, and planned activities at federal, state, and local levels are identified, including research to define the nature and magnitude of the drug and driving problem and actions to reduce the incidence of drug-impaired driving. An overview of drugs and highway safety summarizes the present state of knowledge and discusses the alcohol-highway safety experience in relation to other drugs. Studies of drug effects on measures of driving performance and surveys of drug use among drivers are then reviewed. Also reviewed are the state of the art and current applications of techniques to detect and measure drugs in body fluids of drivers. The treatment of laws relevant to drugs and driving includes a detailed comparison of state laws dealing with drug-impaired driving, their application and limitations. Enforcement, adjudication, and sanctioning practices are described. Specific examples of other countermeasure approaches, including information and education campaigns, are presented.