A TEST which will allow gardaí to check for drug driving will be introduced as part of a new Road Traffic Bill, Minister for Transport Leo Varadkar has said.
It will allow gardaí to ask a motorist to walk a straight line or carry out similar impairment tests. If a garda suspects a motorist is on drugs the motorist will be taken to a Garda station for further testing.
The Minister made the announcement at the Road Safety Authority’s annual academic lecture. The theme was the subject of fitness to drive.
Information from An Garda Síochána has shown drug driving is on the rise year after year, particularly driving under the influence of cannabis.
Mr Varadkar said he wanted to “move ahead as quickly as possible with implementing measures that will detect and deter drug driving”.
The Medical Bureau of Road Safety is examining the efficacy of new drug-testing equipment.
Research has shown that drivers who smoke cannabis are twice as likely to be involved in an accident.
A Road Traffic Bill is currently being drafted at the Department of Transport which will also include a provision to test unconscious drivers if the Constitution allows it.
Mr Varadkar stressed there was also an issue with prescription and over-the-counter medicines, which could also impair driving.
He revealed that the Medical Bureau of Road Safety was also looking at the effects of medicines on drivers.
He said the bureau would prepare a report on the issue which would be made public.
Afterwards Mr Varadkar said he would certainly be increasing the penalty points for using mobile phones while driving, although the exact number of points had not been decided yet.
The issue of an increase in penalty points for using a mobile phone while driving is currently being considered by an Oireachtas committee which is preparing a report for the Minister.
“The key thing is to change the culture to ensure that people know that it is unacceptable to do this,” Mr Varadkar said.
The Minister also maintained that the barriers to having a system of mutually-recognised points between the Republic and Northern Ireland was mostly an administrative issue.
Mr Varadkar and his northern counterpart, Alex Atwood, agreed the detailed timetable for the drafting, passage and enactment of parallel legislation, North and South, by the end of 2014 to allow for the mutual recognition of penalty points across Ireland.
In the Republic somebody with 12 points on their licence is automatically subject to a ban, while in the North he or she can appeal.
“It’s sortable,” Mr Varadkar said.
