Police will be given powers to conduct random roadside oral fluid drug testing in a bill set for Parliament early this year.
“The new powers will send a clear message that if you take drugs and drive, you will be caught,” associate transport minister Julie Anne Genter says.
The change will allow police to test drivers for the presence of drugs and impairing medication just as they can for alcohol.
Drivers who test positive for the presence of drugs will be fined and immediately suspended from driving for a minimum of 12 hours.
Criminal penalties will follow if drivers fail a compulsory impairment test and blood tests confirm impairing levels of drugs in their system.
Ministry of Transport data shows 95 people were killed on the roads in 2018 where the driver was found to have drugs in their system that could impair driving.
The oral fluid devices will initially test for THC, methamphetamine, opiates, cocaine, MDMA (ecstasy), and benzodiazepines which are the most prevalent and high-risk drugs and medications used by drivers in New Zealand.
Police will continue to use the compulsory impairment test to screen for other impairing drugs.
“The threshold for a criminal offence will be aligned with that for alcohol,” Genter says.
“This means a blood test that identifies impairing medication or drugs at or above an amount equivalent to the criminal drink driving limit (80mg of alcohol to 100ml of blood) will result in a criminal offence.
“Oral fluid tests will check for some impairing prescription drugs.
However, a medical defence will be available in instances where people have taken medication in accordance with their prescription.
“The government will work with health practitioners to ensure patients are appropriately warned if they should not be driving on their prescription,” she says.
The Road Transport Forum welcomes the move and has been advocating for roadside drug testing for some time, its chief executive Nick Leggett says.
“Saliva testing for drugs, followed by impairment and blood testing had to happen, so we are pleased to see the Government announce this.
“Those of us in the safety sensitive industries are very concerned about this Government’s plans to legalise recreational cannabis, so it is imperative some steps are in place to ensure employers can meet workplace health and safety laws.
This is one step in that direction.
“We are also pleased to see stiffer penalties for distracted drivers to improve road safety,” Leggett says.
The AA is also welcoming the introduction of roadside drug testing and says it will be a “milestone moment in New Zealand’s road safety history”.
The organisation supports testing devices which will include some potentially impairing medications as well as recreational drugs.
Work will be done to improve the warnings and information given to people taking certain medicines about the potential impact on their driving.
In 16 surveys of random samples of AA Members since 2015, 95% have supported introducing saliva-based roadside testing for drugged driving.
“Drugged driving has been a hidden killer on our roads for many years and the introduction of roadside testing devices will not only be welcomed by the vast majority of drivers but also many of the families that have lost loved ones because of a drug impaired driver,” AA road safety spokesperson Dylan Thomsen says.
“We simply haven’t been doing enough to stop people who are impaired by drugs from getting behind the wheel and putting lives at risk.
Knowing that they will be able to be tested and caught is going to send a much stronger message to not drive if you are impaired by drugs.
“The AA congratulates the Government on taking action on this critical road safety issue.”
Requiring an initial positive result to be confirmed by additional testing to make sure that someone definitely has drugs in their system is a sensible safeguard, the AA says.
It also supports the establishment of thresholds for drugs in a similar way to alcohol so drivers detected at lower levels will face a short driving ban, fine and demerit points while those at higher levels face a criminal charge.
“Drugged driving is a much more complex area than drunk driving because of the range of substances involved and more variation in the way drugs can affect impairment but the Government has come up with a well-balanced approach which, when implemented, will make our roads safer,” Thomsen says.
A step in the right direction
The Drug Detection Agency (TDDA) chief executive Kirk Hardy says the proposed legislation “is a step in the right direction” but he has concerns about how realistic it is.
“Any move to make our roads a safer place is a good move, I have two children who are now driving so I’m concerned like any other parent about impaired drivers.
“My personal and professional viewpoint is that the New Zealand Government is being overambitious with its proposed roadside oral fluid testing regime,” Hardy says.
“The challenge for the Government is the more drugs tested for, the longer people wait on the side of the road.
“TDDA does more than 250,000 workplace oral fluid tests annually.
This is a six-panel test and it will take from eight to 12 minutes to complete, more than the five or so minutes which is being talked about.
At least not with what we would call an acceptable degree of accuracy.
“In Australia the police test for cannabis, methamphetamine, and ecstasy takes between three and four minutes.
If we started off In New Zealand with testing drugs which we know have big impacts such as cannabis, methamphetamine, ecstasy and prescription drugs, that would be a better move,” he says.
Roadside drug testing differs to workplace testing as the testing equipment used by police looks at traces of drugs but the devices used by TDDA operate at standards for workplace testing which include level as opposed to trace, Hardy says.
There are also no time pressures with workplace testing which allows testing for more drugs including prescription medications such as OxyContin.
TDDA has conducted oral fluid testing for companies for nearly two decades and it was also involved in the process to create the new Australian and New Zealand standard for these tests.
TDDA’s group technical manager Rod Dale and chief toxicologist Armin Kiani were part of the New Zealand, Australian standards committee that updated the 2019 Detection of Drugs in Oral Fluids standard (AS/NZS 4760-2006) to the new 2019 version.
“The result of a drug test is only as good as the quality of the testing equipment used and the quality of the training and skill of the person administering it,” Hardy says “Which is why our government should not only be looking at technologies, but also how they can train police to recognise the signs of use.”
