Citation

Vu C, Costello E. Proc. Australas. Road Safety Res. Policing Educ. Conf. 2011; 15.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2011, copyright holder varies, Publisher Monash University)

DOI

unavailable

PMID

unavailable

Abstract

Drug driving is a problem that is recognised in Western Australia. Over the last five years the incidence of drugs detected in fatally injured drivers in Western Australia has increased. This increase has caused concern around the incidence of drug use, such as legal, prescribed and over the counter medications, and illegal psychoactive substances, which have the potential to impact on a drivers' ability to properly control the vehicle, increasing the risk of being involved in a car crash resulting in mortality or morbidity. The relationship between drug use and crash risk is complex and, unlike alcohol, research has not yet established deemed levels for drugs in a driver's system that correspond to a level of risk on the road. Drug driving is an ongoing issue that continues to cause harm across Western Australia. Unfortunately, it is often regarded as a topic that is not salient in comparison to other road related traumas.