Earlier in the week, the\u00a0National Transportation Safety Board<\/a>\u00a0(NTSB) issued a press release about a 2017 traffic accident linked to the “use of marijuana\u00a0in combination\u00a0with the misuse of a prescription\u00a0medication” that killed 12 in Texas.<\/p>\n “The last thing in the world that we want\u00a0is to introduce another legal substance where we may be adding to that toll and to the carnage on our highways,” David Harkey, president of the IIHS’s Highway Loss Data Institute told Bloomberg. “With marijuana impairment, we’re just now starting to understand what we don’t know.”<\/p>\n In a separate interview with NBC, Harkey said the new reports do not confirm there is a direct risk by the use of marijuana among motorist, but certainly raises caution flags, especially since law enforcement has limited ways to test drivers if they are under the influence\u00a0of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana.<\/p>\n “It’s certainly early in the game,” Harkey told NBC News. But he warned: “We’re seeing a trend in the wrong direction.”<\/p>\n The IIHS study notes that after retail sales of recreational cannabis began, the frequency of collision insurance claims in Colorado, Nevada, Oregon, and Washington rose about 6%, however, this trend was not observed\u00a0in surrounding states where marijuana is illegal.<\/p>\n Another IIHS study shows a 5% increase in the rate of auto crashes per one million vehicle registrations reported to police in Colorado, Oregon, and Washington versus neighboring states that have not legalized the drug, reported Bloomberg.<\/p>\n “The bottom line of all of this is that we’re seeing a consistently\u00a0higher crash risk in those states that have legalized marijuana\u00a0for recreational purposes,” Harkey told Bloomberg.<\/p>\n There are now 30 states that have legalized medical marijuana, with Oklahoma recently joining the ranks. Recreational marijuana is legal in California, Alaska, Maine, Massachusetts, and Vermont.<\/p>\n The most recent\u00a0Gallup<\/a>\u00a0poll shows near record-high support for legalizing\u00a0marijuana in the US, as more states are set to follow, including Michigan, where recreational\u00a0pot use is on the November ballot.<\/p>\n Gallup poll results show Americans are craving pot, with an explosion in acceptance since the financial crash of 2008:<\/p>\n\n
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<\/a><\/em>Since the legalization wave began, safety experts have been trying to quantify the potential impact on highway safety, as two IIHS studies show traffic accidents in legal pot states have increased. With so many more states set to allow recreational\u00a0marijuana use, regulators, law enforcement, and medical authorities need to address the future challenges of stoned drivers on America’s highways.<\/p>\n