State Traffic Safety Office Says Drugged Driving On The Rise

SAN FRANCISCO (KCBS)— While drunk driving fatalities have declined, the state Office of Traffic Safety has said the problem of drugged driving is on the rise.

The increase is leading to more research, training and enforcement around the issue of drivers getting behind the wheel while impaired by drugs.

New figures show 30 percent of all drivers killed in motor vehicle accidents in 2010 tested positive for drugs - a percentage that's steadily increased since 2006.

KCBS' Anna Duckworth Reports:

Chris Cochran, with the Office of Traffic Safety, attributes that statistic to the possibility of people driving under the influence of many different types of drugs— both legal and illegal - and to the fact that more drivers in fatal crashes are now being tested.

"With drugged driving we're sort of where we were in the 1950's with drunk driving," Cochran said.

The office secures funding for specialized training programs that teach officers how to identify subtle symptoms of different types of drug use.

CHP Sergeant Ezry Beauchamp, the division coordinator for the Drug Recognition Experts or DRE program, said evaluations for drugged drivers is done almost every day.

There are currently over a thousand active DRE trained officers in California.

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