New Zealand’s DUI road risk is changing

A serious problem with driving under the influence is now being seen in New Zealand. For the first time ever, drivers under the influence of drugs have been involved in a greater number of serious crashes than those under the influence of alcohol. As a result, more people were killed as a result of drug use than alcohol use in road crashes in New Zealand during 2017. This worrying fact highlights the problem with illicit drug use in New Zealand. The result of the research into road deaths has been revealed
June 22, 2018 Read time: 2 mins

A serious problem with driving under the influence is now being seen in New Zealand. For the first time ever, drivers under the influence of drugs have been involved in a greater number of serious crashes than those under the influence of alcohol. As a result, more people were killed as a result of drug use than alcohol use in road crashes in New Zealand during 2017. This worrying fact highlights the problem with illicit drug use in New Zealand.

The result of the research into road deaths has been revealed by the Automobile Association (AA), which says that New Zealand police should be equipped with drug testing kits to help address the problem. Kits that use saliva to test for drug use amongst drivers have been employed successfully in some parts of Australia as well as Denmark, France, Ireland, the Netherlands, Norway, Denmark and the UK for some time and the technology is now well proven. At present New Zealand police have to have strong reason to suspect drug use by drivers and even then, can only carry out tests based on whether a driver is physically capable of walking and turning.

According to the AA, there were 79 fatal road crashes involving drug use by drivers in 2017, compared with 70 fatal crashes involving drivers under the influence of alcohol. This highlights the increasing scale of the issue as in 2016, there were 59 fatal crashes involving drug use by drivers compared with 67 in which drivers were under the influence of alcohol.

The research shows that cannabis and methamphetamine are the most common drugs detected in the case of driving under the influence. The latter drug has seen a particular growth in use in New Zealand in recent years.

The AA is calling for the proven saliva testing kits to be employed in New Zealand and for officers to be able to carry out random testing by the roadside in a bid to tackle the issue more effectively.

Related Content

  • Regulating Kenya’s boda boda business
    July 28, 2015
    Kenya’s many motorcycle taxis have an unenviably poor record for road safety - Shem Oirere writes. A state-owned road safety agency in Kenya is grappling with enforcement of new traffic regulations aimed at reducing the number of road accidents involving two-wheeled motorcycle taxis, popularly known as boda boda. The latest statistics indicate that fatalities relating to these vehicles shot up by 58% during the first four months of 2015. Experts have concurred with a previous study by the World Health Or
    Read More
  • Global growth in machine rental
    May 20, 2015
    The machine rental sector is undergoing significant expansion worldwide – Dan Gilkes reports. Plant hire, equipment rental, leasing, call it what you will, being able to use a machine when and where you need it, with no further concerns relating to ownership costs, depreciation or sudden repair bills, remains a compelling argument for many contractors. Which is one of the main reasons for the continued growth in popularity of equipment rental across the world. Rental has been big business in the UK, the US
    Read More
  • Hamm’s Dr Stefan Klumpp explains future of autonomous compaction
    December 20, 2016
    Autonomous vehicles that can move around without human intervention are not yet a part of everyday life, but they are almost within reach.
    Read More
  • CISMA: French road construction market expected to rise
    January 17, 2018
    Construction and maintenance of roads in France is expected to grow again this year – by 3% - after several years of decline, according to CISMA. Aggregates production is also expected to be up around 3.5%, as well as civil engineering by 3%. Civil Engineering activity is recovering at last, notes CISMA, especially thanks to work in the Paris area. “Across the country, cities large and small have adopted the construction of modern tramways that has led to improved traffic circulation, more convenient
    Read More

Highlighted Content