HARTFORD — AAA said drugged driving is on the rise and their analysis of government crash data suggests the problem here in Connecticut is far worse than in many other states.
A report released last week by the Governor’s Highway Safety Association showed that 43 percent of drivers who died in a crash and were tested for drugs, tested positive. Analysis of that same data by AAA in greater Hartford, reveals that 63 percent of Connecticut drivers who died and were tested for drugs, tested positive.
The drug tests referred to in the GHSA report included both legal and illegal drugs considered to be impairing but AAA’s own polling of Connecticut drivers also paints a disturbing picture.
According to a 2016 AAA poll of Connecticut drivers, more young drivers (18-29) said they ‘regularly’ or ‘fairly often’ drove within an hour of using marijuana (23 percent) than the number who said they drove drunk (16 percent) during the same time period.
This is very much in line with data that indicates that in Connecticut, about 25 percent of the drivers who died in crashes and tested positive for drugs, tested positive for marijuana, according to AAA.
