Friday 2 March 2012

Emedinews: Insights on Medicolegal Issues:How do drugs influence driving?


How do drugs influence driving?
If you think drug–taking has little, or even a positive impact on your driving, you are sadly mistaken. It’s also important to bear in mind that it can be hard to determine exactly how a drug will affect your driving ability. Impairment caused by drugs can vary according to the individual, drug type, dosage, the length of time the drug stays in the body, or if the drug has been taken with other drugs or alcohol.
According to road traffic rules in Delhi, driving with blood alcohol levels more than 30 mg is an offence.

But, blood alcohol level is not the only thing that can determine a person’s sobriety.
A driver whose blood alcohol content reading is somewhat less than 0.03%, but shows signs of impairment can be charged with an intoxicated driving. The "legal limit" is simply the number above which a driver is automatically guilty of driving under the influence without any other evidence.

On merely a suspicion of alcohol in the individual’s body, the police may demand the driver to give a sample of his or her breath into an approved screening device, which will determine the driver’s blood–alcohol concentration on a preliminary basis. In many countries there are provisions of penalty for refusing to provide a specimen of breath, blood or urine for analysis is a up to six months’ imprisonment, and a driving ban of at least 12 months.

Causing death by careless driving when under the influence of drink or drugs carries a maximum penalty of 14 years in prison, a minimum two–year driving ban and a requirement to pass an extended driving test before the offender is able to drive legally again.

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