A comparison of drug- and alcohol-involved motor vehicle driver fatalities : Étude visant à comparer les décès sur les routes impliquant l'alcool et la drogue

The overall pattern of findings indicates that the use of drugs by drivers is an issue distinct and separate from that of alcohol use by drivers and therefore requires a unique approach to prevention, education and enforcement to reduce the number of fatal crashes involving driver drug use and improve overall road safety in Canada. [...] In recognition of the acknowledged magnitude of the drugs and driving problem and the need to take effective action, the Government of Canada passed new legislation (Bill C-2) that went into effect July 2, 2008. [...] This series of amendments to the Criminal Code of Canada strengthened the laws related to drug-impaired driving, providing police with the power to demand a driver suspected of being impaired by drugs submit to a Standardized Field Sobriety Test, participate in an evaluation of drug influence by an officer trained in the Drug Evaluation and Classification (DEC) program, and provide a sample of blo [...] Although research is beginning to document the extent of the drugs and driving problem in Canada, there is also a need to further understand the behaviour and its similarities and differences with the alcohol-crash problem. [...] In 71% of the cases, the driver was the only occupant in the vehicle; in 19.6% of cases, the driver had a single passenger.