New laws empowering South Australia Police (SAPOL) to remove drug drivers from the roads immediately after a positive roadside test is recorded have been foreshadowed by the Minister for Road Safety, Vincent Tarzia.
Mr Tarzia said the Road Traffic (Drug Driving and Careless or Dangerous Driving) Amendment Bill 2021, the first of its kind in Australia, had been introduced into Parliament last Wednesday (8 September).
He said the Bill would allow SAPOL to issue a three-month Instant Loss of Licence (ILOL) if a positive roadside Drug Screening Test (DST) was returned.
Mr Tarzia said more than 6,270 drivers were detected with drugs in their system from 2019 to 2020 and 311 (23%) drivers and riders who lost their lives on the State’s roads between 2015 and 2019 tested positive to drugs.
“This nation-leading road safety measure takes drug drivers off the streets the second they test positive for illegal substances,” he said.
“This legislation is crucial to strengthening road safety for every motorist and pedestrian.”
Mr Tarzia said an ILOL for drug driving did not currently exist and if a driver returned a positive roadside DST, an oral fluid sample was collected and provided to Forensic Science SA for spectrometry analysis.
He said if the spectrometry returned a positive result, the Registrar of Motor Vehicles advised the driver of their three-month licence disqualification.
The Minister said this meant there was a 28-day delay between the initial DST before a loss of licence was enforced, leaving drug drivers free to endanger other lives.
He said that under the legislation, SAPOL would have discretion to decide if the ILOL should be issued at the roadside, or whether circumstances required further testing.
Mr Tarzia said the new law would also make changes under the following categories: Excessive speed; reckless and dangerous driving; and driving whilst disqualified.
