Ireland to introduce U.S. roadside drug testing

Irish drivers are to face stringent new American-style road-side drug testing in 2011.

The tests are to include police officers being permitted to check for dilated pupils, getting drivers to stand on one leg and to walk in a straight line according to the Irish Independent.

Any drivers that refuse to submit to the new tests could face fines for up to €5,000 or jail for six months.

Under current laws motorists who appear intoxicated but who have passed the drink driving breathalyser tests can not be checked for drugs on the road-side. The police officer must arrest the suspect and bring them to the local police station for urine testing.

Last year there were 700 drug driving convictions in Ireland and it is expected that these new laws will lead to a surge in convictions.

The outgoing Transport Minister Noel Dempsey admitted there was increasing evidence that more motorists were driving under the influence of drugs.

"A lot of young people who would not dream of driving under the influence of alcohol would smoke a joint (a cannabis cigarette) and drive," he told the Irish Independent.

"This new roadside impairment drug test is a good interim step until we get a test similar to the breath test for alcohol. It will be another weapon in the arsenal of the gardai," he added.

News of the proposed changes to the current law comes as new research released by the Road Safety Authority show that one on five people admitted to being a passenger in a car driven by a person under the influence of drugs.