Marijuana May Be Legal, But It Can Also Be Deadly When Driving

The state of Connecticut recently passed legislation that allows those over the age of 21 to possess and use marijuana recreationally.  The new law has safeguards in it to help law enforcement with preventing the use of marijuana by a vehicle operator who then gets behind the wheel to drive.  

The month of December is National Drunk and Drugged Driving Prevention Month and a good opportunity to shed some light on the reasons that marijuana can be dangerous and even deadly for someone who is getting behind the wheel of a car.  Similarly to operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol, operating a vehicle while under the influence of marijuana can have devastating impacts on both the driver, passengers, and others sharing the road.  

The following are just some of the negative impacts marijuana can have on your ability to properly operate a vehicle.

1. Slow reaction time.  If you’re driving high you may not be able to stop in time when someone in front of you stops short or properly react to someone who has pulled out in front of you unexpectedly.  A slower reaction time can mean the difference between a deadly crash or safely arriving at your destination.  
2. Impaired judgement of time and distance.  You can imagine how a lack of judgement of distance may severely impact your ability to drive safely.  If you can’t judge how far a car in front of you is properly you could end up in that car’s backseat severely injured or worse.
3. Decreased coordination.  If you are not coordinated behind the wheel of a car it can easily lead to a Connecticut auto accident.  When you’re high your coordination is diminished and therefore you may not be able to perform the functions necessary to drive a car safely.  

You may not think a lot about smoking marijuana and getting behind the wheel of a car, but if you are high when you get behind the wheel there may be devastating effects.  You can misjudge the distance between you and the car in front of you, fail to react to a sudden change in your situation, or not be coordinated enough to make the proper signals for turning or slowing down.  All of these dangerous impacts of being high while driving can have a tremendous impact on your ability to arrive safely at your destination.