LEWISTON – December is National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month in the United States. A lot of focus of impaired driving prevention over the past two or three decades has been on alcohol. Here in Androscoggin County, the efforts of Healthy Androscoggin, the Androscoggin County Alcohol Enforcement Team, and the community-based substance abuse prevention task force Project Unite! have served to greatly impact drunk driving.

Now, with discussions of marijuana legalization in Maine taking place, increased focus is being put on marijuana-impaired driving and its impact on public safety. Many community members are questioning what impact marijuana legalization in Maine would have on the prevalence of marijuana-impaired driving.

The latest science on the effects of marijuana on the brain and body explains how the drug can significantly alter the ability of an individual to drive a vehicle safely. For most, a single potent dose of marijuana would interfere with fundamental driving skills.

The typical effect is significantly diminished psychomotor performance. Psychomotor skills are essential for the basics of driving; steering, braking and shifting between gears. Studies also show that attentiveness, vigilance and perception of time and speed are all impacted by marijuana use.

This combination of effects is what leads to a marijuana-impaired driver being a significant danger to themselves, and others on the road. Research shows that regular marijuana use will double the risk of a motor vehicle crash.

Marijuana-impaired driving is already an issue in Maine. Data from the Maine Department of Transportation collected in 2009 and 2010 shows that in the impaired driving cases where a drug recognition expert was called in, cannabinoids, the drug class that includes marijuana, ranked as the number one drug found.

“I think many in our community wonder if increasing access and availability to marijuana might create more problems on our roads similarly to what they seem to be seeing in Washington,” said Scott Gagnon, substance abuse prevention manager for Healthy Androscoggin. “Our role in this ongoing policy discussion is to educate community members, leaders and other stakeholders on the science and effects of today’s marijuana.”

Healthy Androscoggin has a new presentation on marijuana it can provide to organizations and community groups. The presentation was developed by the Maine Office of Substance Abuse and Mental Health services and its Marijuana Workgroup. It features the latest science on marijuana, its impacts on the brain and body and impacts on public safety. Healthy Androscoggin can provide this training, for free, to any organization or community group in Androscoggin County.

For more information on having a presentation provided to your organization, call 795-2120 or visit www.healthyandroscoggin.org.