Drugged driving is increasingly causing accidents to occur. According to the Governors’ Highway Safety Association (GHSA), there has been an increase over the past three years in the number of drivers involved in fatal collisions who test positive for drugs. As many as 43 percent of drivers involved in deadly accidents in 2015 had drugs in their system.
In light of this growing crash risk, GHSA is partnering with local law enforcement agencies to step up enforcement efforts to combat drug-impaired driving. Hopefully, these efforts to stop drugged driving will be successful at preventing collision injuries and saving lives.
If accidents do happen, an Atlanta car accident lawyer should be consulted by victims or surviving family members of those killed in accidents. An experienced attorney at Glass & Robson can help to hold drugged drivers accountable for the damage that they have caused to occur.
How to Reduce the Risk of Drugged Driving Car Accidents in Atlanta
The Governors’ Highway Safety Association has taken a number of steps aimed at helping states to reduce the increasing risk of drugged driving collisions. GHSA provided grant money to several different states so those states could train as many as 500 officers in better recognizing signs of drugged driving and in evaluating motorists during traffic stops to detect if they are impaired by drugs.
Recognizing that a driver is drugged could allow police to arrest the motorist before he causes a collision to occur, potentially saving lives. Another round of funding is coming, so GHSA expects to provide more grant money to additional locations throughout the U.S. for the training of even more law enforcement officers.
GHSA also published a report entitled Drug Impaired Driving: A Guide for What States Can Do. The guide includes suggestions for how states can help to combat the problem of drugged driving within its borders. The guide included information on:
How drugs affect collision risks
How drugged driving laws can be enforced
What sanctions are effective for drugged driving offenders
Public education campaigns that work to help prevent drugged driving
Drugged driving is likely to become an even bigger problem as more states move towards relaxing marijuana laws and as marijuana use becomes more widely accepted. States will need to pass effective laws for drugged drivers to try to combat the problem.
Educational efforts could also make a big impact as well. Mothers Against Drugged Driving has been tremendously successful in educating motorists about the problems of drunk driving and anti-DUI advocates have managed to successfully stigmatize drugged driving with campaigns like Friends Don’t Let Friends Drive Drunk. As a result of tougher laws and effective public service programs, drunk driving deaths have declined dramatically over the past several decades.
Unfortunately, many people do not view drugged driving as being as dangerous as drunk driving, which is part of why drugged driving accident death tolls are rising. Hopefully, GHSA’s partnership with states will be effective at tackling this serious road safety issue. Victims also need to know their rights following drugged driving collisions and should speak with an injury attorney who can provide them with help taking action after a crash.
Glass & Robson provides legal representation to injured clients in Atlanta, GA and surrounding areas. Call 404-751-4702 or contact us online today to talk with an Atlanta injury lawyer who can fight for your right to compensation if you were harmed.