Skunk smokin' drivers

[Tin Hat]

As a commuting Biker, I filter through the traffic jams of London.

During these hot afternoons, most windows are open, and I would guess that each jam contains at least one skunk smokin' mutant, washing his mind of any awareness and probably getting ready to knock me off when we hit a dual carriageway. I then see Police, Camera, Action (or another of these generic shows) on TV and they catch a driver who admits to smokin' a joint; at the end of the show, he gets off scot free!!!

I am familiar with alcohol and have had a Camberwell carrot or two - neither should be mixed with driving, especially psycosis-inducing skunk.

So why can people get a year ban after 2 pints, but are basically let off when they are stoned???

[Plotloss]

Drug Driving is an offence too.

However, unlike alcohol its a more complex area legally.

[335Dmapped]

Don't know to be honest. Friend of mine was driving stoned, and just drove straight through a red light, got to the other side and went "oh, crap...."

I think the authorities are starting to crack down on drug driving though?

[TommyBuoy]

Do the police have devices to detect drugs at the roadside yet?

I must read that they were going to have these so many times but have never actually heard it confirmed?

[GingerWizard]

some people are just willing to stray outside the white lines of conformity. Its neither right nor wrong, untill they do something that causes an accident and even then its still to be proved its because of the skunk.

In my expirence, those that smoke whilst driving have made a concious decision, those that drink and drive are just winging it.....

Edited by GingerWizard on Friday 28th May 14:25

[soad]

I smell it loads too in certain areas of the city.

Very popular with some individuals...

[Dog Star]

Yep - smell it loads if commuting into a city by motorbike, a surprising number of people must be at it.

[Tin Hat]

Perhaps the authorities accept that living in London is so depressing that being stoned is the only way to cope......

[LuS1fer]

You have to prove the driver was "unfit" to drive through drugs so there has to be a correlative factor of abd driving to underscore the drug use. The problem with drugs is it takes a blood test and they tend to break down in the blood to less definitive chemicals. Excess Alcohol is an absolute offence - you're over 35 in breath and you're guilty (40 in practice) - there is no legal level for drugs so it's much harder. Only an absolute ban would work but that means you have difficulties with prescription drugs etc that might not impair driving.

[hairykrishna]

GingerWizard said:

some people are just willing to stray outside the white lines of conformity. Its neither right nor wrong, untill they do something that causes an accident and even then its still to be proved its because of the skunk.

In my expirence, those that smoke whilst driving have made a concious decision, those that drink and drive are just winging it.....

Edited by GingerWizard on Friday 28th May 14:25

It is wrong. It's making them far more likely to cause an accident, concious decision or not.

I like a smoke now and then but I wouldn't drive under the influence. It's fking stupid.

[Spiritual_Beggar]

Study done on the effects of Marijuana on driving done back in the USA in 1993;

http://www.druglibrary.org/schaffer/misc/driving/d...


A couple of the keys conclusions made by the experiment;

• Marijuana smoking impairs fundamental road tracking ability with the degree if impairment increasing as a function of the consumed THC dose.

• Marijuana smoking which delivers THC up to a 300 ug/kg dose slightly impairs the ability to maintain a constant headway while following another car.

• A low THC dose (100 ug/kg) does not impair driving ability in urban traffic to the same extent as a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.04g%.

• Drivers under the influence of marijuana tend to over-estimate the adverse effects of the drug on their driving quality and compensate when they can; e.g. by increasing effort to accomplish the task, increasing headway or slowing down, or a combination of these.

• Drivers under the influence of alcohol tend to under-estimate the adverse effects of the drug on their driving quality and do not invest compensatory effort.

• The maximum road tracking impairment after the highest THC dose (300 ug/kg) was within a range of effects produced by many commonly used medicinal drugs and less than that associated with a blood alcohol concentration (BAC) of 0.08g% in previous studies employing the same test.

Key conclusion to note is the last one. Cannabis produces the same impairement that many 'Legal' medicines do, though medicines have changed in 10-15 years, so this may not be as valid now. Would need to see a more recent study into the effects on driving ability.

Edited by Spiritual_Beggar on Friday 28th May 14:56

[Plotloss]

hairykrishna said:

It is wrong. It's making them far more likely to cause an accident, concious decision or not.

This interests me.

Not because I disagree but because I'm not sure there is any hard evidence anywhere to back this up.

[10 Pence Short]

Plotloss said:

hairykrishna said:

It is wrong. It's making them far more likely to cause an accident, concious decision or not.

This interests me.

Not because I disagree but because I'm not sure there is any hard evidence anywhere to back this up.

There was a fatal RTC around our way 3 or 4 years ago. A guy on his way home late at night crashed into an artic doing a U Turn and died. During the trial of the lorry driver, it transpired the car driver had had a splif on his drive home. The medical expert who testified said the effect on his reactions would be similar to having had 2 or 3 pints of beer (from memory) and that given the choice he would not have got in the car with him.

[Acehood]

I'd rather people drive around stoned than drunk tbh

[LuS1fer]

The effect is largely irrelevant. It's a public interest matter to remove that risk of impairment. I've dealt with far too many skunkheads with their rolling eyeballs bouncing round to accept that cannabis doesn't have a long term effect on your brain, never mind your driving.

[hairykrishna]

10 Pence Short said:

Plotloss said:

hairykrishna said:

It is wrong. It's making them far more likely to cause an accident, concious decision or not.

This interests me.

Not because I disagree but because I'm not sure there is any hard evidence anywhere to back this up.

There was a fatal RTC around our way 3 or 4 years ago. A guy on his way home late at night crashed into an artic doing a U Turn and died. During the trial of the lorry driver, it transpired the car driver had had a splif on his drive home. The medical expert who testified said the effect on his reactions would be similar to having had 2 or 3 pints of beer (from memory) and that given the choice he would not have got in the car with him.

I think studies have found slight impairment - like http://www.erowid.org/plants/cannabis/cannabis_dri... only small sample size unfortunately.

[Mr_annie_vxr]

Acehood said:

I'd rather people drive around stoned than drunk tbh

I'd prefer you do neither.

If someone is stopped clearly under the influence you can do road side FIT test which we do and get one in about once every other month. Problem is the impairment may only last a short while.

Sensible drug users don't drive under the influence.

Its been clamped down on.

Its a bigger problem than people realise.

[pinchmeimdreamin]

Tin Hat said:

As a commuting Biker, I filter through the traffic jams of London.

During these hot afternoons, most windows are open, and I would guess that each jam contains at least one skunk smokin' mutant, washing his mind of any awareness and probably getting ready to knock me off when we hit a dual carriageway. I then see Police, Camera, Action (or another of these generic shows) on TV and they catch a driver who admits to smokin' a joint; at the end of the show, he gets off scot free!!!

I am familiar with alcohol and have had a Camberwell carrot or two - neither should be mixed with driving, especially psycosis-inducing skunk.

So why can people get a year ban after 2 pints, but are basically let off when they are stoned???

Just chill out man, roll a nice fat one and put some Bob Marley in the 8 Track and it will all be fine

[Galsia]

I used to work with a guy who did it quite often. He was convinced that it made him a safer driver due to the paranoia. What a selfish idiot. I'm not against weed but I've never met a person who smokes it who isn't a complete tt.

[Shay HTFC]

Galsia said:

I used to work with a guy who did it quite often. He was convinced that it made him a safer driver due to the paranoia. What a selfish idiot. I'm not against weed but I've never met a person who smokes it who isn't a complete tt.

You not met a lot of people then.