Crashes caused by drunk drivers are well documented, but the record is much hazier when it comes to tracking collisions caused when the person behind the wheel is stoned on marijuana.

The Centre for Addictions Research B.C. (CARBC) is launching CanadaB次元官网网址檚 first study to determine the actual risk of smoking cannabis prior to  driving a motor vehicle.

The million-dollar study, co-investigated by the University of VictoriaB次元官网网址檚 CARBC researcher Scott Macdonald, is based on blood samples of 3,000 drivers who expected to be hospitalized for injuries at five trauma units across the province.

B次元官网网址淲e donB次元官网网址檛 know the actual risk involved at various levels of smoking pot,B次元官网网址� Macdonald said. B次元官网网址淚f you smoke two joints, what is the actual rick of being in a crash and how much higher is it than if youB次元官网网址檙e sober?B次元官网网址�

For the next five years, blood samples will be taken from anyone in a vehicle accident, so long as a blood sample is required for treatment.

After police have determined who is at fault in each crash, the driverB次元官网网址檚 identification will be wiped from the record before the blood samples are tested for THC B次元官网网址� the active ingredient in cannabis.

B次元官网网址淚t is a very big undertaking,B次元官网网址� Macdonald said.

What sets this study apart from others in the past is the research of the study as well as the quality of data collected.

Other studies have used less-valid means of measuring the THC level in the body, including saliva and urine tests which do not measure active THC.

颁础搁叠颁B次元官网网址檚 Cannabis and Motor Vehicle Crashes: A Multicentre Culpability Study could have the same consequences for marijuana and driving that previous studies of alcoholB次元官网网址檚 role in vehicle crashes had on impaired driving laws, Macdonald said.

editor@goldstreamgazette.com