The recent legalization of marijuana for recreational use in Colorado has prompted a new $450k PSA campaign targeted at drivers who may not be aware of the level of impairment that marijuana can cause, or the legal ramifications of being caught while stoned.
Statistics since 2012 show an increase in both the number of drivers who test positive for drugs, as well as the number of resulting fatalities. To combat this, this pretty direct campaign uses a little bit of hip humor digitally, coupled with blunt creativity in billboards, to show how marijuana can lower reaction times, as well as how marijuana usage compares to the horrific car crashes. The campaign not only gets the point across, but offers links and info about using Lyft and Uber instead.
As more states legalize marijuana for medical use (it is of course illegal to drive under the influence even if you have a prescription), as well as recreational use (though that flies in the face of Federal laws), you should expect to see more PSAs dealing with “buzzed” driving. This current campaign in Colorado is doing a good job of getting the point across without being too preachy, therefore dismissed. And that’s effective advertising. Kudos.
