Over the weekend, The Office of Traffic Safety, surveyed nine cities and, found that more Californians are driving under the influence of drugs than alcohol: more than double, at 14 percent.
“Driving under the influence no longer means just alcohol,” said Silas Miers, a program manager with Mother Against Drunk Driving California. “It includes alcohol and drugs and a combination of both. The result and the consequences are really the same. People get arrested or they end up dead.”
Drugged driving is on the rise in California and it has surpassed drunken driving. It’s been suspected for a while but never quantified just for California until now.
“Nearly half had marijuana. That was the drug. And sometimes it was marijuana plus other drugs, or marijuana plus alcohol,” said Chris Cochran, Office of Traffic Safety.
Besides illegal drugs, the study also found people had prescription and over-the-counter drugs, which can impair driving.
Mothers Against Drunk Driving recently added drugged driving to its campaign because of this rise.
In 2014, law enforcement will have to start indicating on DUI reports whether the case is related to alcohol, drugs or both, this will give the state more concrete numbers in a few years.
KHTS reminds our community to enjoy the holidays responsibly. If you are going to consume alcohol or go to a party that serves alcohol be sure to schedule alternate transportation for you or your loved ones.