ISS N TD Dr About the EMCDDA 16 -X ug 06 D- The European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction 08 -1 us 68 -0 (EMCDDA) is one of the European Union’s decentralised agencies. e, 08 3 Established in 1993 and based in Lisbon, it is the central source im -E N- of comprehensive information on drugs and drug addiction in Europe. pa C ir The EMCDDA collects, analyses and disseminates factual, objective, ed reliable and comparable information on drugs and drug addiction. drivi In doing so, it provides its audiences with an evidence-based picture of the drug phenomenon at European level. ng The Centre’s publications are a prime source of information for a wide an range of audiences including policymakers and their advisors; profes- d tr sionals and researchers working in the drugs fi eld; and, more broadly, af fi the media and general public. c ac The EMCDDA’s Insights are volumes conveying the fi ndings of study ci and research on topical issues in the drugs fi eld. de nt s EMCDDA Price (excluding VAT) in Luxembourg: EUR 24 INSIGHTS EM 280 CD InkSave (ECI); v2 DA Drug use, impaired driving Coated ISO IN and traffi c accidents SPOT SI Profile: GH Output TS 07:35:53; 2008 02, 12 Date: mm); 210.00 x (309.00 8 8 Format: How to obtain EU publications Our priced publications are available from EU Bookshop (http://bookshop.europa.eu), where you can place an order with the sales agent of your choice. The Publications Offi ce has a worldwide networK of sales agents. You can obtain their contact details by sending a fax to (352) 29 29-42758. 280 InkSave (ECI); v2 Coated ISO SPOT Profile: Output 10:17:48; 2008 07, Nov Date: mm); 210.00 x (303.76 Format: EMCDDA INSIGHTS Drug use, impaired driving and traffi c accidents Prepared by Elke Raes, T. Van den Neste, A.G. Verstraete 280 (Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, InkSave (ECI); Ghent University, Belgium) v2 Coated ISO SPOT EMCDDA project group Profile: Output Dominique Lopez, Brendan Hughes, 07:53:27; 2008 02, 8 12 Paul Griffi ths Date: mm); 210.00 x (148.00 Format: Legal notice This publication of the European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction (EMCDDA) is protected by copyright. The EMCDDA accepts no responsibility or liability for any consequences arising from the use of the data contained in this document. The contents of this publication do not necessarily refl ect the offi cial opinions of the EMCDDA’s partners, any EU Member State or any agency or institution of the European Union or European Communities. A great deal of information on the European Union is available on the Internet. It can be accessed through the Europa server (http://europa.eu). Europe Direct is a service to help you fi nd answers to your questions about the European Union Freephone number (*): 00 800 6 7 8 9 10 11 (*) Certain mobile telephone operators do not allow access to 00 800 numbers or these calls may be billed. Cataloguing data can be found at the end of this publication. Luxembourg: Offi ce for Offi cial Publications of the European Communities, 2008 ISBN 978-92-9168-318-5 © European Monitoring Centre for Drugs and Drug Addiction, 2008 Reproduction is authorised provided the source is acknowledged. Printed in Luxembourg PRINTED ON WHITE CHLORINE-FREE PAPER 280 InkSave (ECI); v2 Coated ISO SPOT Profile: Output Rua da Cruz de Santa Apolónia 23-25, 1149-045 Lisbon, Portugal 07:53:27; Tel. (351) 218 11 30 00 • Fax (351) 218 13 17 11 2008 02, [email protected] • http://www.emcdda.europa.eu 12 Date: mm); 210.00 x (148.00 Format: Contents Foreword 5 Introduction 7 Executive summary 11 Chapter 1: Methodological issues in determining the relationship between drug consumption, impaired driving and traffi c accidents 13 Chapter 2: Prevalence of drugs in drivers 37 Chapter 3: Effects and risks associated with drugs 47 Overall conclusion 126 Abbreviations 131 Appendix 134 References 157 280 InkSave (ECI); v2 Coated ISO SPOT Profile: Output 07:53:27; 2008 02, 12 Date: mm); 210.00 x (148.00 Format: Format: (148.00 x 210.00 mm); Date: 12 02, 2008 07:53:27; Output Profile: SPOT ISO Coated v2 (ECI); InkSave 280 Foreword The mobility provided by road transport, particularly the passenger car, allows many modern Europeans to enjoy a lifestyle characterised by fl exibility and independence. However, if we count up the lives lost and injuries infl icted in road traffi c accidents, it is clear that this comes at a price, with the most recent statistics revealing that more than 40 000 people die on European roads each year, while a further 1.7 million are injured. No less than a quarter of these deaths, some 10 000 per year, are estimated to be caused by drink-driving. And although alcohol is by far the most prevalent and well-documented psychoactive substance affecting drivers, concerns have been mounting about increasing reports of road deaths linked to illicit or medicinal drugs. Public awareness of the role of psychoactive substances other than alcohol in road traffi c accidents has increased, due to attention given to this issue by the media, and policymakers are increasingly called upon to respond to this problem. In the European road safety programme tabled in 2003, the European Union set itself the ambitious target of halving the number of road deaths by the end of the decade, thereby saving up to 20 000 lives in 2010. In recognition of the growing problem of driving under the infl uence of psychoactive substances, including illicit drugs and medicines, and the urgent need to establish a fi rm understanding of this issue, the programme proposed a range of measures designed to improve and share information on driving under the infl uence of drugs as a cause of road accidents. Also in 2003, the European Council called on the Commission to ensure that the current programme on road safety is followed up by a set of actions to combat the impact of psychoactive substance use on road accidents. An essential step in this direction is currently being taken under the DRUID project, reporting in 2010, which aims to fi ll gaps in the knowledge base, thereby enabling the development of harmonised, EU-wide regulations for driving under the infl uence of alcohol, drugs and medicine. Driving under the infl uence of drink, drugs and medicines is also targeted in the EU drugs strategy 2005–12 and the EU drugs action plan 2005–08. 280 InkSave (ECI); As part of its aim to provide factual, objective, reliable and comparable information on v2 Coated the drug situation and responses to drug use in Europe, the EMCDDA has undertaken ISO to update its 1999 literature review on drugs and driving. This edition of the Insights SPOT Profile: series is the result of that update. Together with the EMCDDA’s 2007 Selected issue Output on the use of cannabis and benzodiazepines by drivers, the present report provides 07:53:28; 2008 02, a comprehensive picture of the European situation on illicit drugs and medicines 12 Date: mm); 210.00 5 x (148.00 Format: Drug use, impaired driving and traffi c accidents in connection with driving. Both the policymaker and the general reader will fi nd summarised here the large number of studies that have been published on the topic since 1999, allowing an objective appraisal of the known effects of psychoactive substances on the ability to drive, and an assessment of the extent to which drivers impaired by such drugs are present on the roads. Though this edition of the EMCDDA Insights series does not intend to be defi nitive, I am pleased to present what I hope will be seen as an important signpost towards more effective solutions to the problem of driving under the infl uence of drugs. I wish to thanK the following people: Elke Raes, T. Van den Neste and A.G. Verstraete, who conducted the literature survey and prepared the text; Dominique Lopez and Brendan Hughes, who managed the project under the direction of Paul Griffi ths; Shazia Qureshi for editing the text; and Fiona Brown and Peter Fay, who coordinated its publication. Wolfgang Götz Director of the EMCDDA 280 InkSave (ECI); v2 Coated ISO SPOT Profile: Output 07:53:28; 2008 02, 12 Date: mm); 210.00 6 x (148.00 Format: Introduction In the EU Member States, concern about the role of drugs in driver impairment and traffi c accidents has continuously increased. In 1999, a study of drug use among drivers in different European countries concluded that, in the general driver population, the prevalence of illicit drug use was probably in the range 1–5 %, whereas licit drug use was in the range 5–15 % (Verstraete, 2003). The fi rst report by the EMCDDA (1999) on drugs and driving reviewed the available studies evaluating the relationship between drug use, impaired driving and traffi c accidents for a large range of psychoactive substances. It also reviewed Member States’ drug testing procedures and associated legislation on drug-impaired driving, as well as the issues raised by such testing. Among the report’s conclusions was that more research — both experimental and epidemiological — was needed for a better understanding of the effects of drugs on the ability to drive. It was also suggested that psychomotor tests and roadside screening devices needed to be further developed in order to improve procedures for detecting impaired drivers. The European action plan on drugs 2000–04 refl ected this need, calling for research into the effects of driving under the infl uence of illicit drugs and certain psychoactive medicines (1).