States with legal marijuana are experiencing more, new study finds

While data on the effects of marijuana on driving were analyzed, the results were inconclusive. But now a new study claims to have found a link between legal marijuana and car accidents.

As published in the Journal of Studies on Alcohol and Drugs, researchers saw a 6% increase in legal marijuana states. States that hadn’t legalized marijuana saw no increase in car accidents.

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The study’s data shows that fatal auto accidents have increased by 2%, leading researchers to believe marijuana may cause more accidents, but doesn’t result in a deadlier driving environment. They suspect this is due to marijuana’s effect of slowing people’s reaction time, which can cause them to drive more slowly and thus be involved in fewer fatal accidents.

In a press release, lead researcher Charles Farmer argued that while there are some benefits to legalizing marijuana, it also comes with costs. “Legalization removes the stigma of marijuana use, while starting retail sales merely increases access,” he said. “But access to marijuana is not difficult, even in places without retail outlets. Users who previously avoided driving high might feel like it’s okay after legalization.”

However, with the available data, the researchers cannot prove that marijuana use causes more car accidents. “Studies looking for a direct causal relationship between marijuana use and accident risk have been inconclusive,” says the study’s lead author. “Unlike alcohol, there is no objective measure of how impaired a marijuana user has become. Until we can accurately measure marijuana impairment, we cannot link it to accident risk.”

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Over the years, various companies have attempted to develop accurate technology that would measure cannabis impairment. Happiness has yet to come as marijuana affects people in a very different way than alcohol, making for a highly individualized experience. While two people are consuming the same amount of cannabis, their bodies can experience very different reactions.