Nevada Traffic Deaths Fall in Last Year

For John, BLUF:  Maybe legal marijuana won't be as bad as some of us feared.  Nothing to see here; just move along.

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Nevada Traffic Deaths Plunge 10% Following Marijuana Legalization

Here is the sub-headline:

It is the one-year anniversary of recreational marijuana in Nevada - how has the state fared?

From Zero Hedge, by Mr Tyler Durden, 2 July 2018.

Key Paragraph:

According to a report from NBC Reno, about 310 people died in traffic accidents in Nevada between July 2016 and May 2017.  From July 2017 to May 2018 — the first 11-months of legal recreational marijuana — just 277 people died in car crashes across the state. KRNV noted that the Nevada Department of Public Safety was unable to provide data for June.

As Stephen Green notes, correlation is not causation, but something is going on.  My wife suggests that maybe people are just staying home and smoking.  Or maybe they aren't drinking as much and are thus not quite as impaired on the road.

I wonder what the results are for Colorado?

The National Bureau of Economic Research suggested that there is “little evidence” that the legalization of marijuana is responsible for increases in traffic deaths in states that have legalized recreational marijuana.  And, in Nevada, local tax revenues are up.

Hat tip to the InstaPundit.

Regards  —  Cliff