Photo: westword.com
The biggest news this week for pot-smoking lovers is that Canada is a weed-friendly countriy now, after it became the second nation in the world to allow possession and use of recreational cannabis, after Uruguay.
In the U.S., there are ten states where recreational use marijuana is legal and 37 where it can be used for medical purposes. And that’s a problem, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) says.
The organization punched in some numbers and found that in states where marijuana can be smoked for joy legally, the number of car crashes is higher than in places where it is not allowed.
Together with its division Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), the IIHS says that in marijuana-friendly states Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington there are 6 percent more car crashes than in neighboring states where recreation is not based on smoking pot.
The HLDI claims the rise in the number of crashes began following the start of retail sales of marijuana in the surveyed states compared with the control states of Idaho, Montana, Utah and Wyoming. The timeframe analyzed by the organization is from January 2012 through October 2017.
"The new IIHS-HLDI research on marijuana and crashes indicates that legalizing marijuana for all uses is having a negative impact on the safety of our roads," said in a statement IIHS-HLDI President David Harkey.
"States exploring legalizing marijuana should consider this effect on highway safety."
The organization believes the problem is only about to get bigger, as the legalization of recreational use is pending in New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Soon, Michigan and North Dakota will hold referendums on marijuana, and Missouri and Utah voters will decide whether to expand medical marijuana laws in their states.
Smoking pot and getting behind the wheel is treated just as other forms of DUI. Law enforcement agencies do however have a hard time testing drivers to check for marijuana-related impairment.
The organization punched in some numbers and found that in states where marijuana can be smoked for joy legally, the number of car crashes is higher than in places where it is not allowed.
Together with its division Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), the IIHS says that in marijuana-friendly states Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington there are 6 percent more car crashes than in neighboring states where recreation is not based on smoking pot.
The HLDI claims the rise in the number of crashes began following the start of retail sales of marijuana in the surveyed states compared with the control states of Idaho, Montana, Utah and Wyoming. The timeframe analyzed by the organization is from January 2012 through October 2017.
"The new IIHS-HLDI research on marijuana and crashes indicates that legalizing marijuana for all uses is having a negative impact on the safety of our roads," said in a statement IIHS-HLDI President David Harkey.
"States exploring legalizing marijuana should consider this effect on highway safety."
The organization believes the problem is only about to get bigger, as the legalization of recreational use is pending in New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, and Pennsylvania. Soon, Michigan and North Dakota will hold referendums on marijuana, and Missouri and Utah voters will decide whether to expand medical marijuana laws in their states.
Smoking pot and getting behind the wheel is treated just as other forms of DUI. Law enforcement agencies do however have a hard time testing drivers to check for marijuana-related impairment.
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