Road freight association Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New
Zealand is recommending transport operators prepare for
random roadside drug testing, which is being gradually being
rolled out across New Zealand from mid-December.
A
recent amendment to the Land Transport Act gives Police
similar powers to random breath tests, by requiring drivers
to undergo a saliva test to check for the presence of four
illicit drugs.
If two saliva test are positive (a
fail), the driver is prohibited from driving for 12 hours
and a sample is sent to a lab for analysis. If those results
show an impairing level of drugs, then the driver will
receive a minimum of a $200 fine and 50 demerits. Refusal to
undertake the test incurs a $400 fine and 75 demerits, as
does the presence of two or more drugs.
The four drugs
being screened in the roadside saliva test are THC
(cannabis), methamphetamine (meth), MDMA (ecstasy) and
cocaine.
“Transporting New Zealand supports the
introduction of roadside drug, which has been running in
other countries including Australia,” says Policy &
Advocacy Advisor Mark Stockdale.
“Crash data shows
that around 30 percent of all road deaths in New Zealand
involve the consumption of an impairing drug, which is on a
par with drink driving. Evidence
from Victoria, Australia shows their roadside drug
testing regime saves more than 30 lives and almost 80
serious injuries every year.”
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Transporting New Zealand
says the Police expect about 12 percent of all roadside drug
tests to be a positive result (fail).
Stockdale
advises transport operators to ensure they have up-to-date
drug and alcohol policies, including random workplace
substance testing, and to have honest conversations with any
staff that may have a substance problem.
“We want road
freight businesses to be proactive, rather than risk a
driver being stood down at the roadside and putting other
road users at risk.”
Stockdale also recommends that
transport operators update their employment agreements and
policies, to require drivers to disclose any private
offending (drug driving infringements occurring in personal
vehicles outside of work hours).
“If you employ a
truck driver who has failed or refused a random roadside
drug test, in their own time and vehicle, it’s important to
be notified of that.”
- A recording of a webinar
covering this topic, hosted by Transporting New Zealand and
the Bus & Coach Association, can be viewed on our website.
About Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New
Zealand:
Ia Ara Aotearoa Transporting New Zealand is
the peak national membership association representing the
road freight transport industry. Our members operate urban,
rural and inter- regional commercial freight transport
services throughout the country.
Road is the dominant
freight mode in New Zealand, transporting 92.8% of the
freight task on a tonnage basis, and 75.1% on a tonne-km
basis. The road freight transport industry employs over
34,000 people across more than 4,700 businesses, with an
annual turnover of $6
billion.