Now that recreational and medical marijuana have been legal in Colorado for more than a year, how has that affected traffic fatalities? Many prohibition advocates have warned that there would be a surge in impaired drivers, as well as deaths. As many have noted, marijuana is difficult to test for, as its presence remains in the bloodstream for as long as 30 days, and is not a good measure of inebriation at the time of the accident.
It seems that the statistics for 2013 show that 5.7% of the fatalities involved a driver that tested positive for cannabis, according to DOT data. This is in line with results for previous years. The data for drivers testing positive for drugs overall was approximately 16% from 2006 - 2010.
Statewide, preliminary data indicate that traffic fatalities have declined overall since 2002, when there were 743 deaths. In 2014 there were 465 fatalities according to the Colorado Department of Transportation. It is interesting to note that the number of suspected "impairment" (including alcohol) fatalities for 2014 was 152, or approximately one third. This percentage is consistent with historical statistics. There has been much conjecture about how the legalization of marijuana would impact DUI statistics in Colorado. It appears that at this point the increase in impaired driving is not significant.
Colorado has implemented various safety campaigns to decrease impaired driving, and has established that a driver with a maximum of 5 nanograms of THC in the bloodstream is violating the law. Drug recognition training programs for officers, which police believe is an extremely effective method to detect a driver who is high, have alsobeen implemented.
Although those who bend the data for or against marijuana are able to use the statistics to support the argument either way, it appears that the jury is still out on whether traffic fatalities will increase with the legalization of marijuana.
Source: Colorado Department of Transportation - CDOT
