Brazil’s Federal District Traffic Office Tests Drugometer to Identify Drug Use

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – The Traffic Department of the Federal District (Detran – DF) began testing a device called a drugometer, which is capable of identifying psychoactive substances in drivers’ bodies.

The test is done using the driver’s fingerprint and can identify 15 types of drugs including crack, cocaine, and ecstasy. The device will be tested in Dry Law operations in the Federal District.

According to Francisco Saraiva, Detran’s Director of Policing and Traffic Control, Brazil is one of the first American countries to use this device.

He points out that the drugometer is in a testing stage, so drivers cannot yet be charged for the use of illicit drugs. “At the moment we are going through the testing phase where the citizen is invited to take the test. It’s not mandatory.”

During the educational blitz in Brasilia, 15 evaluations were made. One driver presented a positive result for drug use. The driver was instructed to call another qualified driver to move the vehicle.

According to Saraiva, the drugometer should be regulated by the National Traffic Council (Contran) by the end of 2019. From then on, drivers may be fined for driving under the influence of psychoactive substance.

The director highlights that 48 percent of people who died in traffic accidents in the Federal District in 2018 had consumed alcohol or drugs. “Detran uses this type of equipment because it justifies the use to reduce the number of fatal accidents in traffic.”