National
Spain has more drugged than drunk drivers behind the wheel
By h.b. - Nov 22, 2007 - 6:14 PM
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The Road Safety Prosecutor in Spain, Bartolomé Vargas, has said that there are more drivers on drugs behind the wheel than those who are under the effects of alcohol.
He bases his statement on trial period of random testing of drivers which has been taking place in Cataluña over recent months, but he says he is confident that the data would extrapolate accurately across the country where some other pilot schemes have been established in some areas.
The head of the D.G.T. Traffic Authority in Spain, Pere Navarro, has said that they are currently perfecting a drugs detection system and that this works in two stages.
Firstly it is established whether the driver is positive or negative for the substances and then secondly a more accurate measurement is made via blood or saliva should the driver be unhappy with the first finding.
Pere Navarro noted that more people die on the roads of Europe than all the murders, drugs and AIDS deaths put together.
The move comes in the same week that the Penal Code in Spain has been altered to allow those driving at more than 60kms/hour over the urban speed limit, or 80 kms/hour over the motorway speed limit, or without a licence, to face a prison sentence for the first time.