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Paper cut of a cannabis leaf on the green of a makeshift traffic light in Leipzig
Photo: Peter Endig / picture alliance / dpa-Zentralbild / dpa
To accompany the partial legalization of cannabis, a commission of experts has presented a recommendation for a limit value in road traffic. Based on the active ingredient THC, a concentration of 3.5 nanograms per milliliter of blood serum is suggested, as the Federal Ministry of Transport announced on Thursday. When this value is reached, “according to the current state of science, a traffic safety-relevant effect when driving a motor vehicle is not remote.”
So far there is no legal limit for cannabis while driving like the 0.5 per mille mark for alcohol. However, a value of 1 nanogram has been established in case law, from which point sanctions are threatened.
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In order to introduce the recommended limit value, a change in the law by the Bundestag is required, it was said. This does not apply at the start of partial cannabis legalization on Easter Monday, April 1st.
The commission also recommends that there be an absolute ban on driving while driving during the probationary period after obtaining a driving license and for those under 21 when consuming cannabis. This is intended to take into account the particular risks of mixed consumption. The working group, set up by the Ministry of Transport, included experts from medicine, law, transport and the police.
According to the experts, the proposed limit of 3.5 nanograms is a "conservative approach whose risk is comparable to a blood alcohol concentration of 0.2 per mille." The background is that when consumed regularly, THC can still be detected several days after the last consumption. With a limit value of 3.5 nanograms, the aim is to ensure that - unlike the threshold of 1 nanogram - only those for whom a "traffic safety-relevant effect" is possible are sanctioned.
The FDP parliamentary group's addiction and drug policy spokeswoman Kristine Lütke welcomed the step: "The THC limit in road traffic must be adjusted as part of cannabis legalization." The Bundestag should quickly start the legislative process for the new limit on the basis of "this balanced proposal." initiate.
mfh/dpa