Pubdate: Thu, 04 Aug 2016
Source: Etobicoke Guardian (CN ON)
Copyright: 2016 Etobicoke Guardian
Contact:  http://www.insidetoronto.com/community/etobicoke
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/2218

REMAINING VIGILANT AGAINST IMPAIRED DRIVING

It's sad that we still have to warn people about the dangers of
impaired driving; one would have hoped the message had been received
loud and clear by now, but that is unfortunately not the case.

In today's editions of our papers we look at the consequences of
impaired driving, from the standpoint of a woman whose life was
forever altered after being struck by a driver who was impaired, and
from the perspective of a young man who killed one of his best friends
after crashing a car while driving drunk.

These are tragic stories, and in both cases they could have been
avoided. We ask all our readers to think hard about the toll impaired
driving can take on the lives of so many people and to make sure they
take the necessary steps to avoid such tragedies. We can't emphasize
enough the importance of not driving impaired - be it from alcohol,
prescription drugs or marijuana.

It's critical for all to remember that alcohol is not the only cause
of impaired driving.

As our stories show, there's growing concern among police about what
impact Canada's new marijuana laws will have on impaired driving.
Police are preparing for a spike in drivers "one toke over the line",
and the Ontario Provincial Police are training officers to
specifically detect drug-impaired drivers.

While police admit that it will remain to be seen whether
drug-impaired driving increases in Canada, evidence from the state of
Colorado (where marijuana is legal) indicates one in eight of its
impaired driving citations in 2014 involved pot use.

Clearly, as the federal government moves towards relaxing Canada's
marijuana-use laws it will have to take into account how drug-impaired
driving is determined by police, and what standards the courts will be
setting for criminal charges.

It is critical that the message gets out that drug-impaired driving is
as socially and morally unacceptable as drunk driving.

Further complicating the dangers on our roads is the "grey" area of
those driving (often unknowingly) under the influence of prescription
drugs. Patients and doctors must improve their level of understanding
about the impact of prescription drugs and medications on the ability
of a person to drive, and make sure that information is available.

We all need to take a greater level of responsibility about our
actions, and the decisions we make, before we get behind the wheel of
a vehicle.
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MAP posted-by: Matt