Victorian Parliament approves medical cannabis driving test

The Victorian Parliament has passed new laws allowing medical cannabis users to get behind the wheel on a closed road. These new laws are part of a study designed to examine the effects of marijuana on a person’s ability to drive.

Victoria became the first Australian state to legalize medical cannabis in 2016. However, people participating in this program may still face legal consequences if they are found to have tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) in their system while driving.

The difficulty here is that THC can remain in a person’s body long after the “high” has worn off. However, you may still get offended even if you haven’t consumed it for a few days. Currently, Tasmania is the only state that allows a medical defense if THC is found in a driver’s bodily fluids.

This is the main meaning of the Victoria test – to determine what level of THC is safe when driving. Many Victorian medical marijuana users have raised concerns about the risk of losing their license or being fined. The Victorian Parliament had initially addressed these concerns in 2021, but the effort was delayed due to COVID-19.

The government plans to commission an independent research organization (currently undetermined) supported by the Department of Transport and Planning. And they have made sure that this research will take place in a controlled driving environment away from public roads.

Such efforts couldn’t come at a better time. The number of medical marijuana patients in Victoria has increased by more than 700% in the last two years, according to Road Safety Minister Melissa Horne.

The importance of understanding the effects of cannabis on drivers

While Victoria can recognize the many benefits medical cannabis offers residents, there remain “significant gaps” in her understanding of THC. More specifically, what impact it has on drivers and what risk it poses to road safety.

“This bill will allow us to conduct a world-leading research trial on medical cannabis and driving, improving our understanding of how cannabis affects driving behavior and informing future reforms,” Horne said.

There have been further efforts to reform traffic laws and medical marijuana. For example, House of Lords MPs Rachel Payne and David Ettershank from the Legalize Cannabis party have campaigned to make it no longer a criminal offense for a driver to be unimpaired with detectable levels of THC in their body fluid. Both Payne and Ettershank support the current process but fear it will take too long.

“The reality is that patients continue to wait,” Payne said. “Medical cannabis has been prescribed since 2016, which is a long time for patients to wait for a solution.”

She continued: “A medical cannabis patient, like any other patient prescribed medication, should be treated by a doctor who will also provide appropriate advice on when that patient can safely drive.”

In addition to this information, it would also be helpful to have a way to test for impairment. Since law enforcement cannot rely on surefire results like a blood alcohol test, it would also be beneficial for Victoria to conduct an appropriate physical test to determine whether a driver is drunk.