Police step up fight against drug-impaired drivers
The Belgian police want to use a new device to make the fight against drugs in traffic more targeted and efficient, writes Het Nieuwsblad on Thursday. The devices will make drug tests cheaper and more efficient.
Potential drug-impaired drivers are currently tested with a saliva test. But this is too expensive to use for every driver. So the police are introducing a new device to determine which drivers should undergo a test.
These drug detection devices can very quickly detect traces of recent drug use on the hands of the person being tested or on parts of the car, such as the steering wheel. If the device sounds an alarm, the driver is then required to take a saliva test.
Drug detectors are already used at airports and are becoming increasingly popular with security services. Recently, the ministry of Justice also bought a dozen high-tech detection devices to speed up the detection of drugs in prisons.
Growing issue
Officers currently use a checklist of about 40 external signs, ranging from shaking limbs and glassy eyes to a "euphoric state of mind", to determine which drivers may have taken drugs and should therefore be tested. This list is now being extended to allow saliva tests to be carried out more quickly, for example if a car smells like drugs or the driver is uncooperative.
Drug-impaired driving is a growing problem in Belgium. Last year, an average of 35 drug-impaired drivers were caught every day in the country, twice as many as in 2015.
PHOTO © LOIC VENANCE / AFP
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