As part of a Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) project, Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) researchers looked into Texans’ attitudes on marijuana use and analyzed the traffic safety impacts in states that have legalized, decriminalized, or made the use of marijuana available for medical purposes.
The project, headed by TTI Assistant Transportation Researcher Jena Prescott:
- Surveyed residents of Texas counties on attitudes toward marijuana use.
- Conducted a literature review of the effects of marijuana use on the human body, the driving task and crash risk.
- Conducted a crash analysis of drug-impaired-driving crashes (fatal and serious injury) in Texas from 2010 to 2015 and compare those to similar crashes in states with decriminalized marijuana laws.
- Conducted a policy review of Washington, Alaska, Colorado, Oregon (states where marijuana use is legal) and Washington, D.C., as well as Texas.
Prescott and her team also created public education and outreach materials to be used in impaired driving outreach and education campaigns in the Lone Star State.
The materials are available and can be downloaded at the following links:
Marijuana and Driving: A Look at Texans’ Attitudes and Impact on Driving Under the Influence
Effects of Marijuana on the Body
Effects of Marijuana on the Driving Task
Marijuana Laws by State