MARIJUANA MESSAGE PASSING YOUNG MOTORISTS BY, SURVEY FINDS

15% Of Youngsters Surveyed For Study 'Toked' And Drove

Education campaigns aimed at drinking and driving may be reaching
teens, but are less effective when it comes to drug-impaired driving.

A new study finds teens are more likely to drive after smoking
marijuana than after drinking, according to a recent study of 6,000
Atlantic Canadians in Grades 10 and 12.

Fifteen per cent of the 15-and-18-year-olds surveyed drove under the
influence of cannabis last year, compared with 12% who drove after
drinking, says a study published in the journal Accident Analysis and
Prevention.

Drivers who had smoked marijuana were four times more likely to be
involved in an accident than those who had not. The study's results
are considered accurate within 1.6 percentage points, 99 times out of 100.

"While we seem to be doing a pretty good job of letting young people
know that alcohol and driving don't mix, they don't seem to be
getting the same message with respects to other drugs," said Mark
Asbridge, co-author of the study and an assistant professor in
community health and epidemiology at Halifax's Dalhousie University.

The study arrives just as health agencies and not-for-profit groups
are starting to put a new emphasis on driving-and-drugs education
programs and as the federal government's Bill C-16 -- aimed at
amending the Criminal Code on drug-impaired driving -- is in second reading.

The study, by Mr. Asbridge with Christiane Poulin and Andrea Donato,
found the students surveyed more commonly drank (62.6%) than toked (33.6%).

"Consumption of alcohol is still higher than the consumption of
cannabis, which is really the interesting twist," Mr. Asbridge said.

"We can suggest that the fact cannabis now succeeds alcohol in terms
of driving while impaired, based on these adolescents, the message is
getting lost somewhere."

While it could be inferred the kids are experiencing more car
accidents because of marijuana use, Mr. Asbridge said another
argument is that kids who drive under the influence of cannabis also
engage in other risky behaviours, such as driving without a licence
and using fake ID to buy liquor, as well as driving after drinking.

"There seems to be small subgroups of kids, typically young males,
who are all doing all of these behaviours, not necessarily all at the
same time," Mr. Asbridge said.

The study based its results on teens who toked one hour before
driving. Students who held a licence for more than one year were at
greatest risk for an accident.

Mr. Asbridge suggested law enforcement agencies, educators and
organizations such as Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) are not
sending out strong enough messages about drugs and driving.

He said MADD "does fantastic work with alcohol, but are only starting
to get into the drug business."

In the late summer, MADD launched a campaign targeting drug-impaired
driving aimed at high school and post-secondary students.

"The drugs are popular with the kids, the marijuana is popular with
the students, and they do think it's okay to toke and drive. It's
quite a concern for us." said Karen Dunham, president of MADD.

"We do find a lot of young Canadians just don't get it. If you're
high, don't drive."

In late November the Canadian Public Health Association will launch
its Cannabis and Driving Project, a campaign aimed at teens age 14 to 18.