RAC General Manager Corporate Affairs, Will Golsby, said the report showed meth was prominent in WA road fatalities and reinforced the need for more roadside drug testing.
“Any illegal substance that reduces a person’s driving ability and their capacity to make sound decisions is a problem for road safety and an issue for the community,” Mr Golsby said.
The Curtin-Monash Accident Research Centre report into Illicit Drugs and Driving investigated the deaths of 1,375 drivers or riders killed on WA roads between 2000 and 2012 and found 47 per cent of fatally injured drivers had drugs or alcohol in their system. Twenty-three per cent of those killed had one or more illegal drugs detected.
“RAC believes enforcement is a core road safety response to tackle this issue,” Mr Golsby said.
“Western Australia is drug testing far fewer drivers than other states, even though our State has a serious meth issue.”
RAC welcomed the State Government’s announcement last year that the number of drivers being drug tested would increase, however, WA’s rate of tests against population was still well behind those of New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia.
“As of October 2015, New South Wales had conducted 97,000 tests per year, which was equivalent to approximately one test per 78 persons. Victoria conducted 100,000, equivalent to one test per 59 persons. South Australia conducted 40,000, making their ratio closer to one test per 40 persons,” Mr Golsby said.
“Western Australia conducted 24,986, making our ratio one test per 104 persons.
“Victoria and New South Wales have a target of 100,000 tests per year, which is indeed reflected by their greater populations. However South Australia, a State with a comparable population size to WA, has achieved a far better persons-per-test rate than Western Australia.”
