Federal Transportation Officials Partner With Ad Council On New Campaign Aimed At Countering The “Dangerous Belief” That Driving While High Makes People Better Drivers

The U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) and the Ad Council have launched a new national advertising campaign designed to confront the widespread misconception—especially among young male drivers—that marijuana use does not impair driving ability, and may even improve it.

The initiative, titled “Tell That to Them,” features a disturbing 60-second ad based on what officials describe as a real-life incident involving a child killed by a driver under the influence of cannabis. The ad is intended to disrupt the growing belief that driving while high is harmless.

New PSA Shows Driver Claiming Cannabis Improves His Focus Moments Before Causing A Fatal Crash

In the centerpiece commercial, a man confidently asserts that he drives “better when I’m high,” claiming marijuana makes him “more careful, more chill, more relaxed.” Seconds later, the ad cuts to the same driver drifting into oncoming traffic and causing a deadly head-on collision.

The story is meant to highlight the fatal gap between perceived ability and actual impairment, a discrepancy that federal traffic safety officials say is driving an increase in risky behavior behind the wheel.

The campaign pairs its visuals with the tagline: “If you feel different, you drive different.”

Research Explores Psychedelics As Potential Tools To Improve Sexual Satisfaction Over Months, Highlighting Parallel Shifts In Drug Use Perceptions

While entirely separate from the DOT campaign, new research has emerged suggesting psychedelics may improve sexual satisfaction for months after use. These findings reflect a broader cultural shift in how Americans perceive psychoactive substances from cannabis to psilocybin—both in terms of potential benefits and potential risks.

Federal safety officials say this kind of evolving drug culture underscores the need for clear, nuanced messages about impairment and public safety, including driving.

NHTSA Warns That Reaction Time, Coordination And Judgment Are All Impaired By Marijuana Use

DOT’s National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), which partnered with the Ad Council on the new campaign, emphasized that the belief cannabis improves driving is dangerously incorrect.

“Too many young men think marijuana doesn’t affect their driving ability or even makes them safer drivers,” NHTSA Administrator Jonathan Morrison said. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.”

Marijuana, he noted, slows reaction time, impairs coordination and reduces judgment, all of which significantly increase crash risk.

Ad Council Says Many Young Men Don’t Recognize The Risks Of Driving While High, Creating A Need For Sharper Public Messaging

Michelle Hillman, chief campaign development officer at the Ad Council, said internal research shows a troubling trend: some young men not only underestimate the risks of driving high—they actively believe cannabis makes them more competent drivers.

“This new PSA taps into the justification some drivers tell themselves and interrupts it,” Hillman said. “We’re proud to build on our 30-year partnership with NHTSA to reshape driver habits.”

Creative firm Standard Practice helped produce the advertisement.

Federal Tone Shifts: After Years Of Casual, Culture Friendly Cannabis Ads, NHTSA Returns To Shock Style Messaging

The campaign represents a strategic shift from NHTSA’s recent marijuana-related ads, which often leaned into cannabis culture with a lighter tone. Earlier PSAs such as those released around Thanksgiving and winter holidays avoided stigmatizing cannabis users and instead used humor, cultural references and light imagery to reach consumers.

Historically, federal ads funded by the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) used fear-based messaging, often reinforcing negative stereotypes about cannabis users. In the past few years, however, NHTSA had moved toward softer, more culturally tuned messaging.

Now, the agency appears to be returning to more intense imagery, showing fatal consequences and emotional trauma in its newest ad.

It is not yet clear whether the harsher tone is connected to language in a House-passed spending bill that would block federal money from supporting ads that could be seen as encouraging drug use. Anti-marijuana advocates have praised those provisions.

Past Federal Ads Have Sparked Debate, Including A CGI Cheetah Smoking A Joint And A Slasher-Film Parody About High Drivers

This is far from the first time NHTSA’s creative choices have triggered discussion.

In 2021, the agency ran an ad featuring a computer-generated cheetah smoking a joint while driving—a puzzling choice given the animal’s reputation for speed and agility, which some critics said made the depiction unintentionally glamorous or comedic.

Another 2020 ad parodied a horror film, showing two men fleeing an axe murderer but stopping before attempting to drive because one of them says, “Wait… I can’t drive. I’m high.”

These ads drew mixed reactions, with some praising their creativity and others questioning their effectiveness.

Science On Cannabis Impairment Remains Complex, With No Clear Linear Link Between Blood THC Levels And Driving Performance

While public health experts broadly agree that driving under the influence of cannabis is dangerous, researchers continue to debate how best to measure marijuana impairment.

A major scientific review last year found no consistent linear relationship between blood THC concentration and driving performance. THC levels, the report noted, can vary dramatically between frequent and occasional users, even when impairment levels do not.

“The consensus is that there is no linear relationship of blood THC to driving,” the review concluded, casting doubt on the per se THC limits enacted in several states.

NHTSA has repeatedly acknowledged this complexity. As early as 2015, the agency stated it was “difficult to establish a relationship” between THC blood levels and performance impairment. A 2022 report echoed that sentiment, finding “relatively little research” supporting the use of blood THC as a proxy for impairment.

A Justice Department researcher similarly warned last year that states may need to rethink THC-based impairment thresholds altogether.

Federal Agencies Signal Increasing Focus On Cannabis Impaired Driving Even As Cannabis Laws Evolve

Despite scientific uncertainty and rapidly changing state marijuana laws, NHTSA has signaled it intends to intensify efforts to address cannabis-impaired driving, with Administrator Morrison saying earlier this year that he plans to “double down” on public-safety messaging in coordination with the White House.

The new “Tell That To Them” campaign represents the agency’s most forceful move yet one that officials hope will break through the myth that cannabis makes people safer or more focused behind the wheel.

As marijuana use becomes more normalized across the United States, federal agencies appear determined to ensure drivers understand that impairment, regardless of the substance, can have deadly consequences.

For more information contact at info@cannabisriskmanager.com

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