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Tough new measures to curb drug-impaired driving
View(s):The government has brought in tough measures to combat drug-impaired driving, granting the police and medical officers powers to test and prosecute offenders.
The Motor Traffic (Drugs) Regulations, No. 01 of 2025, issued by Transport, Highways, Ports and Civil Aviation Minister Bimal Rathnayake, were published in an Extraordinary Gazette on September 4.
Under the new rules, a police officer may act on “reasonable suspicion” that a person driving or in control of a vehicle has consumed drugs. Suspicion may arise from abnormal behaviour, changes in speech or movement, loss of balance, unusual eye condition, or even the appearance of a driver’s clothing. Police may also subject drivers to tests based on complaints or conduct a preliminary saliva test using devices approved by the Inspector General of Police.
Motorists are legally required to comply with such a test. Refusal means they must be produced before a Government Medical Officer (GMO) or authorised hospital officer for further examination. Police officers are also directed to ensure that saliva tests are conducted discreetly, away from public notice.
Medical officers are empowered to demand samples of blood, urine, saliva or other bodily fluids as part of their examination. Failure to provide such samples will be treated as an offence under the Motor Traffic Act. If drug use is detected, the GMO must issue an immediate preliminary report to police while a portion of the sample is sent to a state-approved laboratory for confirmation.
The law establishes a strict “zero tolerance” standard: if any amount of a drug is detected in a driver’s sample, that individual will be deemed to have consumed drugs. Substances covered include those listed in Group “B” of the Poisons, Opium and Dangerous Drugs Ordinance, as well as narcotics and psychotropic substances under the Convention against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances Act.
Where no drug use is found, the GMO must issue a report clearing the driver. The final report from the medical officer or authorised officer will then be submitted to the officer-in-charge of the relevant police station to initiate legal proceedings, if required.
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