According to a new report released by the American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) a large majority of licensed truck drivers in the US support legalizing marijuana federally and an even higher percentage support loosening marijuana testing policies.
The Impacts of Marijuana Legalization on the Trucking Industry report found that 72% of truck drivers support “loosening marijuana laws and testing policies, and 66% support marijuana being a federally legal substance similar to alcohol.
When asked if marijuana testing policies that examine active THC metabolites should be replace with a standard that measure true impairment, 65% said they support the change.
Around half – 50.2% – of respondents agreed with the statement that “it is either very common or common to leave the industry” because of rules or regulations related to marijuana. 55% of truck drivers who work in states where marijuana has been legalized say that it has had no negative impact on road safety.
“The American Transportation Research Institute (ATRI) today released a new report that assesses the impacts of marijuana legalization on the trucking industry.”, the group said in a press release. “The analysis, which was a 2022 top priority of ATRI’s Research Advisory Committee (RAC), covers several critical topics related to state-level marijuana legalization, including:
- a review of the latest demographic trends in marijuana legalization;
- an overview of research and data related to highway safety and marijuana use;
- a summary of workforce and hiring implications for the trucking industry; and
- an analysis of publicly available CDL driver drug test data.”
Additionally, the report “includes industry surveys that provide insight into motor carrier and truck driver perspectives on the consequences of marijuana legalization and current drug screening regulations. The data collected show that drivers and carriers are equally frustrated with current drug testing limitations, in particular the lack of a test for marijuana impairment.”
More information on this report can be found by clicking here.
