The Colorado Department of Transportation (CDOT), the marijuana industry and Lyft have teamed up to provide discounted rides to individuals who are high on marijuana. The effort was initiated to help decrease instances of “stoned driving.”
The three organizations have announced their commitment to continue discounted rides through April 2018 as a part of their 320 Movement. The 320 Movement began last March, with the goal of educating people who enjoy recreational marijuana about the dangers of driving while high. Lyft has painted 17 vehicles green and featured a message that says “Plan a ride before you’re high” on the sides of the cars. They chose to create a fleet of 17 cars because in 2016, 17 percent of all DUI arrests involved drivers who were high on marijuana.
According to a spokesperson for CDOT, “Despite the fact that marijuana impairs judgment, coordination, decision-making and reaction time, an alarming number of users — 55 percent — still believe that it is safe to drive under the influence of marijuana.” A study published by the Highway Loss Data Institute confirms this assertion, saying that there is a definite connection between driving while high on marijuana and an increase in vehicle accident risks.
According to CDOT, the 320 Movement has provided 3,800 Lyft discounts codes to drivers and almost 1,200 have been used. The program will soon be available to drivers across the state.
Hopefully, the 320 Movement will reduce instances of people driving while high on marijuana and also reduce crashes. In addition, it’s hoped that more drivers will be responsible, refrain from driving while high, avoid getting arrested for a DUI violation and prevent the drawn-out and complicated process of needing to defend themselves in court against the allegations.
Source: Westword, “Lyft, CDOT and Pot Industry Giving Ride Discounts to Decrease Stoned Driving,” Thomas Mitchell, Nov. 07, 2017
