Roadway Deaths Level Off After Pandemic Spike, but Remain High
Earlier this year, the Governors Highway Safety Association noted a spike in pedestrian deaths, calling it particularly concerning and a “safety crisis on our roads.”
Every state has laws dealing with alcohol-impaired driving and drug-impaired driving. But unlike the laws for drunk driving, those that address drugged driving are nuanced, difficult to enforce and prosecute and vary substantially by state.
In addition to general impairment laws, there are two basic laws that states tend to use when addressing drug-impaired driving:
18 states have zero tolerance or non-zero per se laws for marijuana.
NOTE: GHSA does not compile any additional data on drug-impaired driving laws other than what is presented here. A compilation of state marijuana laws is available via the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, and information on marijuana-impaired driving laws is available from the National Alliance to Stop Impaired Driving (NASID). For more information, consult the appropriate State Highway Safety Office.
Sources: State Highway Safety Offices.
Last updated in January 2024. Laws last reviewed by SHSOs in March 2023.
Per se >0 for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
THC per se (5 ng)
Per se >0 for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
THC per se (2 ng)
Per se >0 for some drugs
Legal for medical use
THC per se (5 ng)
Permissible inference law >0 for THC
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
Permissible inference for THC (5 ng)
None
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
None
Legal for medical use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
None
None
Decriminalized
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
Legal for medical use
Decriminalized
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
None
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Illegal
Zero tolerance for delta-9-THC
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Illegal
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Decriminalized
None
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational (effective 8/1/23) use
Zero tolerance for THC but no restriction on metabolites (effective 8/1/23)
Zero tolerance for THC
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Legal for medical and recreational use
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Illegal
None
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Illegal
Zero tolerance for THC
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Illegal
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
THC per se (5 ng)
Illegal
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
Zero tolerance for some drugs
Legal for medical use
Zero tolerance for THC and metabolites
None
Illegal
None
None
Illegal
None
None
Illegal
None
None
Decriminalized for legal for medical use
None
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
None
Illegal
None
None
Illegal
None
None
Legal for medical use
None
None
None
Legal for medical use
None
Illegal
None
Decriminalized and legal for medical use
None
None
None
Illegal
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
None
None
Per se >0 for some drugs
None
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
Decriminalized and legal for recreational and medical use
None
None
None
None
Legal for medical use
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
None
None
Per se >0 for some drugs
Decriminalized and legal for medical and recreational use
THC per se (2 ng) for felony violations
None
Earlier this year, the Governors Highway Safety Association noted a spike in pedestrian deaths, calling it particularly concerning and a “safety crisis on our roads.”
Jonathan Adkins, chief executive of the Governors Highway Safety Association, called the deaths, “heartbreaking, unacceptable and preventable.” “We will not accept such incremental safety progress after two years of escalating deaths and more dangerous driving on U.S. roads,” he said in a statement.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) announced that an estimated 42,795 people died in traffic crashes in the United States in 2022 – down 0.3% from the year before. That’s an average of 117 people dying on our roads every single day last year.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) today announced that an estimated 42,795 people died in traffic crashes in the United States in 2022 – down 0.3% from the year before.
On Feb. 9 the State of Connecticut hosted a Cannabis Impairment Detection Workshop in Guilford as part of a law enforcement training program. The Connecticut Department of Transportation received a grant from GHSA and Responsibility.org to conduct a combined “wet lab” and “green lab."
One of the biggest questions about cannabis legalization has been "will police be able to tell if a driver is high?" This month, the UConn Transportation Safety Research Center put that to the test, hosting a unique experiment where law enforcement could see how well they could detect impairment.
"Fans don't let fans drive impaired." That's the message from the Colorado Department of Transportation, as the country prepares for the upcoming Super Bowl between the Kansas City Chiefs and the Philadelphia Eagles in Glendale, Arizona.
In 2021, Responsibility.org and GHSA awarded grant funding for the Wisconsin Department of Transportation (WisDOT) to increase education and the number of officers trained as Drug Recognition Experts (DREs).
The Maryland Highway Safety Office was awarded grant funding from Responsibility.org & GHSA to certify officers & instructors as Drug Recognition Experts, conduct cannabis & intoxication impaired driving labs & reduce the toxicology backlog by outsourcing the analysis of blood alcohol samples.
In 2021, the Louisiana Highway Safety Commission (LHSC) was awarded grant funding from Responsibility.org and GHSA to offer municipal and state judges the Computerized Assessment Referral System (CARS) screening and assessment tool.