|

Drug-Impaired Driving in Ontario

Author(s): Di Felice

Slidedeck Presentation:

CAA_CARSP_Drug Impaired Presentation_Michael Stewart_Final

Abstract:

Background:

Almost 3 years have passed since cannabis has been legalized in Canada in 2018 and with the pandemic hitting in 2020, a general increase in consumption of both cannabis and other substances has been seen. CAA Club Group has been conducting an annual survey (except for 2020 due to the pandemic) Ontario driver's cannabis consumption and driving habits. CAA wants to be seen as the leader in drug-impaired driving advocacy. This research was done to aid in the evolution of our advocacy and awareness strategy on the issue of cannabis use and its impact on road safety, including poly-use (combining cannabis and other substances like alcohol), cannabis edibles, and drug detection at roadside and enforcement procedures used by police. Through these results, we hoped to get a better knowledge and understanding of the perceptions, attitudes and behaviours of Ontario drivers and if cannabis has an impact.

Aims:

This research aided the CAA Advocacy Team in the evolution of the advocacy and awareness strategy on the issue of cannabis use and its impact on road safety, including poly-use
(combining cannabis and other substances like alcohol), cannabis edibles, and drug detection at roadside and enforcement procedures used by police. The objectives of the survey were to measure:

  • Perception of the dangers and frequency of impaired driving (by alcohol/cannabis) before and during the pandemic
  • Awareness about different types of cannabis use (edibles, smoking, oil, vapers) on one’s ability to drive (coordination, reaction time, decision making abilities, ability to pay attention and judge distances).
  • Evaluate the public level of comfort with cannabis, prescription drugs, illegal drugs (cocaine, meth, etc.) and/or alcohol consumption while operating a motor vehicle (smoking and edibles)

Methods:

1,500 Ontario drivers were survey between Sept 22nd and Oct 5 2021. To qualify for the survey, respondents were screened to meet the following criteria:

  • Ontario only
  • Between the ages of 19 and 75
  • Have a valid driver’s license (G1, G2 or G)
  • Have access to a vehicle

Results:

Key highlights from our findings include:

  1. Nearly half (44%) of Ontario drivers admit to ever consuming cannabis. Frequency has increased since legalization 51% of current users consume cannabis weekly or more often (+4 from 2019).
  2. Solid edibles have grown in popularity since 2019 and are now tied with non-pre rolled joints in terms of P3M usage, posing a risk for edible cannabis impaired driving.
  3. Alcohol is most often paired with cannabis (40% have consumed with cannabis), but there are some who also use other substances with cannabis.
  4. 1 in 20 Ontario drivers (and 1 in 5 current cannabis users) claim to have driven under the influence of cannabis in the past 3 months, posing a risk for road safety.
  5. Cannabis impaired drivers are primarily driving after smoking a joint, but driving after consuming edibles is a growing concern 1 in 3 cannabis impaired drivers consumed some form of edible before driving.
  6. Fewer cannabis impaired drivers feel confident in their driving abilities as compared to 2019, while more cannabis impaired drivers felt very or somewhat high when driving.

Additional findings are available but would not fit the word count limits. A white paper with more findings will be available soon to share if you have any additional questions or would like more details.

Discussion:

We learned through this research that cannabis edibles have grown in popularity and are increasingly more present in cannabis-impaired drivers. This is important to raise awareness on as edibles have delayed effects and can be more difficult to detect in drivers (no obvious signs like smell that comes with smoking a joint). We are using this research to raise awareness on this topic ahead of the holiday season as with less restrictions and smaller case numbers, more people will be able to celebrate with friends and family (compared to 2020). We will continue to use this data to influence our advocacy and education efforts. An important issue that was also flagged through this research is that young drivers and less likely to think cannabis-impaired driving is dangerous and current cannabis-impaired drivers are more likely to fall into the 25-34 age group.

Conclusions:

This research gave us a set of recommendations for how to address cannabis-impaired driving. These recommendations included:

  • Focus advocacy efforts towards 19-34 year-olds
  • Highlight the risks of driving under the influence of edible cannabis
  • Draw awareness to the face that drug-impaired driving penalties mirror alcohol-impaired driving.

Cannabis-impaired driving is still a serious issue in Ontario and through this research and our education efforts, we hope to encourage people to plan ahead and drive sober.