Taiwan to institute mandatory saliva testing

Legal General Legal Matters
21

I was wondering what the motivation was for such serious action.

Oh its weed again.

If only we could somehow transfer the concern they have for weed over to dangerous driving then Taiwan would be a drivers paradise.

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22

Well that’s not necessarily true as a portion will still be active . It affects driving performance.

If drugs are in your body over a certain quantity you will be prosecuted , that’s just the way it works otherwise what scheme could we use ?

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23

No it certainly is not.
I wrote it already, vaping with Etomidate is the main issue currently . Colourless aromaless liquid that is potent in very small quantities. Harder to identify than meth which has a strong smell and requires larger amounts and usually in powder form.
With some drivers it’s obviously prescription drug misuse. Ever notice all the sleep clinics everywhere?

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24

Exactly: Don’t drive after doing drugs or drinking. It’s that simple.

Don’t blame the government if it takes longer than a day for the drugs to disappear from your system…

25

I think you have missed the point, if they are didn’t do something illegal they wouldn’t have a problem. No I don’t believe in jailing them either, huge fines for the 1st three offences are suitable and then start jailing them. Similar to how red-light jumpers, red-line parkers should be treated etc etc

26

The positive result from the first test typically requires confirmation from a blood sample which requires them to be brought back to the station. The cops are waving a lot of ppl through now because they don’t have good roadside testing for drugs and it causes a lot of conflict.

The requirement to take a blood sample is a common procedure worldwide because the first tier test will have many false positives from related drugs.

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27

The sentiment is the same. The problem is the drugs, not the driving.

28

More legislation on the topic of driving - this time aimed at unlicensed drivers.

The legislature yesterday passed amendments to the Road Traffic Management and Penalty Act (道路交通管理處罰條例) that raise the fines for driving a motor vehicle or riding a motorcycle without a valid license.

Under the amendments, unlicensed motorcyclists face fines ranging from NT$18,000 to NT$36,000, while unlicensed car drivers face fines of NT$36,000 to NT$60,000.

Police would also be required to impound the vehicle on the spot….

…According to National Police Agency statistics, there were 45,456 cases of unlicensed driving in 2019, resulting in 658 deaths and 65,155 injuries.

The number rose to 55,492 cases in 2023, with 763 deaths and 78,885 injuries, showing an upward trend that far exceeds the 253 fatalities caused by drunk driving.

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I could see this legal net being used to enforce a number of laws at driver checkpoints to find unlicensed drivers and riders, and once implemented could be easily abused for enforcement of “x" issue or problem of the day.

29

It’s weird how the number of unlicensed drivers is going up with a falling overall population. Especially in a country where it’s so easy to get licensed.

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30

It does look odd. Probably increased traffic stops? Another reason could be more people driving per head of population? It would be interesting to see the stats of unlicensed drivers by age.

31

It’s probably going to be foreigners, but who knows?

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32

You might be right there.

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33

I was being flippant. Increased traffic stops is most likely, as you said.

34

Doesn’t explain the increase in deaths and injuries. More people on the road? the youth, the migrant workers, ebikes, age catching up with the elderly’s reflexes?

:thinking:

35

I would hazzard a guess at cell phone distraction being a major reason for the increase. Even 1 in 2 scooters now seems to have a cell phone holder so they can play with their phones while riding. With the rise of 3->4->5G streaming videos/games is now easy.

Cycling Mikey from youtube fame would catch dozens a day here.

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36

What “doesn’t explain…”?

37

Sorry, increased traffic stops don’t explain the reported number of unlicensed drivers going up when at the same time the number of deaths and injuries also increased. Seemed a logical question/comment at the moment but I had forgotten about the phone issue, maybe the biggest contributor to accidents overall.

Hope that makes sense, and if it doesn’t, well, strap in.

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38

You may be right.

39

whats this testing for? rabies?

40

It’s in the vapes. Rabies

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