Driving and Cannabis

Never drive while using cannabis. It's always illegal and unsafe to drive impaired.

It is illegal to drive impaired

Driving while high is a serious crime. Drivers can face immediate roadside penalties and criminal charges.

PEI laws about drinking alcohol and driving are the same for driving when using cannabis. The provincial penalties for driving drunk and driving high are also the same.

It is illegal to drive when you are impaired by a drug, even if you have a prescription.

Driving while using cannabis is dangerous

Because of the THC in cannabis, when you’re high, your reflexes are slower, your judgment is blurred, you may be sleepy, you may panic or hallucinate.

Drivers who use cannabis are more likely to get into an accident than drivers who don’t use and drive.

Using alcohol and cannabis at the same time can add to the impairing effects. Together, even smaller amounts may be more potent than using alcohol or a drug alone.

Stash your stash

If you have cannabis in a vehicle, it must be in a closed package and out of reach of anyone in the vehicle.

It is illegal to use cannabis in any motor vehicle

It’s illegal to use cannabis in any motorized vehicle (car, boat, off-road vehicle, etc.*) even if it is not moving or unable to move. This is true even if you are on private property.

It is illegal for a passenger to use cannabis in your vehicle.

There are extra penalties if you use cannabis in a vehicle when a person under 18 is present.

*A motor vehicle includes any motorized vehicle, including cars, aircraft, ATVs, snowmobiles, ride-on lawnmowers, motor boats, etc. If your home is a vehicle, such as a houseboat, motor home, or camper, and it is parked or moored in a secure spot, you can consume cannabis in it. If your home is in motion or unsecured, you cannot consume cannabis

Police can detect impaired driving

If you are in a vehicle (regardless of whether it is moving or not) and a police officer has grounds to believe that you are impaired by drugs and/or alcohol, the officer will demand that you do an impaired driving test. If you refuse, you can be charged with an offence that has the same penalties as driving while impaired.

Police can test to see if you are impaired by drugs or alcohol in several ways:

Standardized Field Sobriety Tests (SFST);
Approved Screening Devices (ASD);
Drug Recognition Experts (DRE);
blood tests

For more information, download Cannabis and Drug Impaired Driving

Penalties

If you drive while impaired by drugs or alcohol, or both, there are federal criminal charges and associated penalties as well as provincial penalties. Some of the penalties for a first offence include:

an immediate 24-hour roadside suspension of your driver’s licence
that is followed in seven days by a 90-day driving prohibition;
immediate 30 day vehicle impoundment (with all fees paid by you);
minimum fine of $1,000, and;
jail time;

Upon conviction, additional penalties include:

one year cancellation of your driver's licence;
$500 fee to re-instate your driver`s licence.

Young and inexperienced drivers

Individuals under the age of 22 years-old and individuals who are in the graduated drivers’ program must not have any level of alcohol or drugs in the blood stream when driving.

Facts about drug-impaired driving