Interaction of Alcohol and Other Drugs Involved in Fatal Crashes

This paper describes a study of the incidence of drug use among drivers and pedestrians killed in fatal crashes in Melbourne. Australia. Overall, 42% of the study population had been drinking and 66% had used drugs other than alcohol, caffeine and nicotine.

Blood alcohol concentration was significantly related to the road users' liability for the crashes in which they were killed. However, there was no relationship between liability and use of other drugs.

Only 11% of the study population had used alcohol in combination with other drugs and individuals with zero blood alcohol levels were more than twice as likely to have used other drugs as those who had been drinking.

No drinking road users who were deemed not liable for the crashes in which they were killed had combined alcohol with use of other drugs.

The implications of these data to development of relevant countermeasures to crashes in which cannabis or medication are factors has been discussed.