Traffic & Transit
MA Will Be First State To Use Cannabis Driving Curriculum For Teens
More than 20 states have recreational marijuana, but Massachusetts will be the first to teach teens about cannabis-impaired driving.
WORCESTER, MA — Starting in January, Massachusetts will become the first recreational marijuana state in the U.S. to use a new drivers education course focused on cannabis-impaired driving.
The Registry of Motor Vehicles, Cannabis Control Commission and AAA on Friday will unveil the new teen-oriented curriculum — called "Shifting Gears: the Blunt Truth about Marijuana and Driving" — at an event in Worcester.
Teenagers seeking drivers licenses already hear about alcohol and drug-impaired driving, but the new course will focus specifically on how THC can make driving dangerous.
"This is the first generation of driver education students to be licensed since cannabis became legal in Massachusetts, and AAA research shows that impaired driving crashes may increase and continue to injure and kill motorists and their passengers," the RMV said in a news release.
About 50,000 teens take drivers-ed classes each year across several hundred driving schools in the state, according to the RMV. Under state law, anyone under 18 seeking a license has to complete 30 hours of classes before getting a regular license.
Massachusetts legalized recreational marijuana in 2016 by ballot measure. Teenagers aren't allowed to legally consume it, however — the legal buying age is 21.
