Certain drugs can cause one to drive irrationally or impair judgment, rendering one unable to use the road responsibly. The effects of these drugs differ based on how they act in the brain. For example, drivers who use methamphetamine may be aggressive and reckless when driving. They may go above the speed limit, ignore traffic rules and ram into objects.
On the other hand, marijuana can impair judgment, cause slow movements and hinder coordination. Marijuana drivers tend to weave lanes and respond slowly to driving situations.
However, it’s not only illegal or hard drugs that can affect a driver’s judgment. For example, prescription drugs such as opioids can cause a driver to feel dizzy and impair their thinking and judgment-making abilities, doubling a person’s tendency to crash their vehicle.
As a result, many states have zero tolerance for drugs that can impair judgment even if bought over the counter. Still, there’s no standard roadside measure for drug use yet. Since some drugs stay in the bloodstream for days, it can be difficult to determine whether someone’s driving was actually being influenced by the drugs.