Just a small amount of a banned substance could be the difference between life and death on the roads of Merseyside, police are warning.
Officers are fed up with drivers arguing substances such as cannabis do not impair their skills behind the wheel.
Now they are urging people to consider the consequences after more drivers were stopped with drugs in their system than alcohol in 2019.
Their appeal comes after students across Merseyside produced a series of hard-hitting videos highlighting the dangers of drug driving.
Students from Sefton, Knowsley, St Helens and Liverpool colleges were given a brief by Merseyside Road Safety Partnership to create an awareness campaign for social media.
The powerful pieces were premiered at the City of Liverpool College on Wednesday.
The latest figures show that drug driving offences have rocketed in recent years.
Last year, Merseyside Police carried out 2,201 arrests after drivers were found to have cannabis, cocaine and sometimes a cocktail of the two in their system.
Just over 1,100 of those questioned tested positive for cannabis with police revealing some of those argued the drug did not affect their ability to drive.
Paul Mountford, of the force's Safer Roads Unit, said: “Ignorance about drug driving laws is no defence, neither is an insistence that your driving isn't affected by a small amount of cannabis.
"Despite what people might feel, we know from experience that any amount of alcohol or drugs in a driver's system significantly affects their awareness, reflexes and assessment of hazards."
The legislation surrounding drug driving changed in March 2015.
It is now an offence to drive with certain drugs above an "extremely low" specified level in your blood - just as it is with drink driving.
Seventeen legal and illegal drugs are covered by the law, including cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy and ketamine.
The limit for all illegal drugs is said to be "extremely low", so a small amount could mean a driver is breaking the law.
Being caught can have potentially devastating consequences, including for the driver.
Mr Mountford said: "The consequences can be absolutely devastating to the life of the driver caught, and anyone else unfortunate enough to come across them on the roads.
“From losing your licence; potentially losing your job and income; massive insurance costs; being refused entry to foreign countries; through to the unimaginable tragedy of taking someone's life: there is simply no justification for risking it all to drive home under the influence.
“The laws on drug driving have been around long enough now for people to understand that we can and will prosecute those people who have drugs in their system.
"We've stopped and caught more than 2,000 people. Don't think we won't catch you."
Of those drivers who tested positive for drugs, 653 were found to have cocaine in their system and 213 for both cannabis and cocaine.
Calling on people to report suspects to prevent lives being placed at risk, Mr Mountford added: “We want people who suspect someone is drink or drug driving to share our disgust that someone could be so reckless on the roads, and share our determination to reduce these risks.
"People often criticise the police for using roads policing fines as a money-making device, but this isn't the case.
"We all want to get to a point where drink and drug driving is no longer a concern to anyone. Our priority is saving lives and making the roads safer."
