Pubdate: Wed, 20 Mar 2002
Source: Reuters (Wire)
Copyright: 2002 Reuters Limited
Bookmark: http://www.mapinc.org/pot.htm (Cannabis)

SPLIFF BEATS DRINK FOR DRIVERS

LONDON (Reuters) - Motorists who smoke a cannabis joint retain more control 
behind the wheel than those who drink a glass of wine, British scientists 
have found.

Research from Britain's Transport Research Laboratory showed drivers found 
it harder to maintain constant speed and road position after drinking the 
equivalent of a glass of wine than after smoking a spliff, the magazine New 
Scientist said on Wednesday.

Researchers who used a driving simulator to conduct tests on 15 volunteers 
found motorists on cannabis tended to drive cautiously, aware of their 
intoxicated state. But drivers given a combination of cannabis and alcohol 
performed worst of all.

British doctors last week called for the development of testing devices to 
deter motorists from driving under the influence of drugs including 
cannabis, citing a rise in the percentage of Britons killed on the road who 
tested positive for the drug.

But medical experts recommended the British government reclassify cannabis 
as a low-risk drug, sparking a debate over its decriminalisation.
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