As law enforcement and educators in Yellowknife prepare for the legalization of marijuana this fall, another institution in the city is quietly shifting gears to address new realities for young people and impairment behind the wheel: driving schools.
“We are in the process of getting our staff educated on the whole cannabis industry and how it affects driving,” said Colleen Tsikira, a driving instructor at DME Driving School.
With weed set to be become legal on Oct. 17, Tsikira told Yellowknifer the driving school will introduce new curriculum to reflect evolving cannabis laws.
“We are in the process of educating our team so we can make the right decisions and we can actually incorporate it in our curriculum which we're rolling out in the fall,” said Tsikira.
“We want to make sure the students know exactly what the risks are,” she added.
With revamped programming – set to coincide with legalization – still in the works, Tsikira couldn't say for sure what the updated curriculum will feature, but said it will include new in-class teaching tools so that students can “know better and do better,” while on the road once pot is legal.
While changes are coming to the driving school's curriculum, Tsikira said an increased emphasis on the risks of driving high will follow the lead of long-running lessons on the dangers of drunk driving.
“If you're going to do it, it's the same with alcohol, we want you to do it safely and not be high and drive,” she said.
Last week, Statistics Canada released the findings of its national cannabis survey – a look at the habits and attitudes Canadians hold on the soon-to-be legal drug. Twenty-seven percent of Yellowknifers aged 15 years or older said they had used cannabis in the past three months – almost double the national average which sits at 16 percent.
Statistics Canada surveyors said the high rate in Yellowknife likely reflects the city's young population, as cannabis use decreases with age across the country.
“My initial reaction was that that's pretty high,” said Tsikira, adding she was shocked to learn of the of the 27 percent figure.
Tsikira said the new data places extra importance on the need to retool driver's ed curriculum in the wake of legalization.
“We were going to do it either way, but the statistics help us know what is important and it puts it to the forefront of planning,”she said.
In the same StatsCan survey, 82 percent of Canadians said they likely wouldn't try cannabis or increase their cannabis use come October – but “intention to use cannabis in the future and once legal,” hinged largely on whether the person reported current use.
For those who did report current use, 28 percent said their consumption would likely spike once weed becomes legal.
Tsikira called the statistic “unfortunate” but said it drives home the importance of informing young people.
“Different people, different things. That's why it's important to educate everyone,” she said.
Dawn Pottinger, co-founder of Yellowknife's Defensive Driving School, echoed the educational link between alcohol and marijuana impaired driving.
“I don't think that we've changed the approach so much, but we still emphasize zero tolerance with anything that's going to impair you, whether it's a prescription drug, alcohol or marijuana,” she said.
While there are no plans to restructure Defensive Driving School's curriculum in the fall, Pottinger said pot's looming legalization is very much on the company's radar.
“(Legalization) is going to happen and we've got to make our students aware of it – just don't do it,” said Pottinger.
Pottinger said young people should be learning about the risks associated with marijuana-impaired driving outside of a driving school setting, too.
“I've got children that drive and I hope instructors teach other people's children and other new drivers the same as I would talk to my children about it. It's something that has to come up with parents in conversation with their kids,” said Pottinger.
Pottinger said she hopes law enforcement has the tools to confront weed-impaired driving, “because it's hard to make a law if you can't enforce it.”
At DME Driving School, Tsikira said the school is taking a proactive approach with legalization on the horizon. She said the company isn't waiting to see exactly what efforts to curb pot-impaired driving from police will look like.
“We don't want to wait for law enforcement to come out with something because we believe that we'll be holding back students who want to learn to drive right now; who need the information right now,” said Tsikira.
But screening devices could soon be used by Mounties in Yellowknife following approval from Canada's federal justice minister.
The device – the Draeger DrugTest 5000 – is designed to detect THC, cannabis' activity ingredient , in driver's suspected of being impaired by marijuana.
But as News/North recently reported, some are expressing reservations about the device's ability to accurately gauge a person's impairment when it comes to pot.