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Smoking weed while driving: A commission is now proposing a limit. © Karl-Josef Hildenbrand/dpa
The planned partial release of cannabis raises concerns - also in terms of road safety. When should sanctions take effect?
Berlin - To accompany the legalization of cannabis, a commission of experts has presented a recommendation for a limit value in road traffic. Based on the active ingredient THC, a concentration of 3.5 nanograms per milliliter of blood serum is suggested, as the Federal Ministry of Transport announced. When this value is reached, “according to the current state of science, a traffic safety-relevant effect when driving a motor vehicle is not remote”.
So far there is no legal limit for cannabis while driving like the 0.5 per mille mark for alcohol. However, a value of 1 nanogram has been established in case law, from which point sanctions are threatened.
Alcohol ban for cannabis users
In order to introduce the recommended limit value, a change in the law by the Bundestag is required, it was said. This does not apply at the start of partial cannabis legalization on Easter Monday (April 1st).
According to the information, the independent commission also recommends an absolute ban on alcohol behind the wheel for cannabis users. This is intended to address the particular risks associated with mixed consumption of cannabis and alcohol. The working group, set up by the Ministry of Transport, included experts from medicine, law, transport and the police.
According to the experts, the proposed limit of 3.5 nanograms is a “conservative approach whose risk is comparable to a blood alcohol concentration of 0.2 per mille”. The background is that when consumed regularly, THC can still be detected several days after the last consumption. With a limit value of 3.5 nanograms, the aim is to ensure that - unlike the threshold of 1 nanogram - only those for which a “traffic safety-relevant effect” is possible are sanctioned. dpa