Teens on Pot Behind the Wheel Highlighted
Alert issued after fatal crash report points to the need for more education, prevention.
The NTSB urges parents to educate their teens about the dangers of pot-impaired driving.
Pexels/Garvin St. Villier
A photo of an unrecognizable Chevrolet sedan serves as a stark illustration of the potentially deadly effects of smoking pot and driving.
The image, which shows what little remains of the Spark, including deployed air bags, captures the severity of a crash that killed six teenagers in rural Oklahoma two years ago.
The National Transportation Safety Board used it in a safety alert it issued this week imploring parents to educate their teens on the risks of mixing marijuana and driving.
The alert followed the final NTSB report on the crash between the Spark and a tractor-trailer that determined the Spark’s 16-year-old driver turned into the path of the truck after failing to make a complete stop at a stop sign. The agency said the driver was likely impaired at the time from recent marijuana use. She and the five teen passengers were all killed.
Though multiple states have legalized recreational and/or medicinal marijuana use, it’s still illegal to use it and drive, NTSB pointed out.
“We’re already behind when it comes to traffic safety, and marijuana-impaired driving is exacerbating the crisis,” said NTSB Chairperson Jennifer Homendy in the alert. “States have to do a better job of protecting road users from impaired drivers, regardless of the substance or its legality.”
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