Hamburg police are increasingly checking drivers for drug use

Hamburg police are increasingly checking drivers for drug use this week. There are fixed checkpoints on three days, and mobile police teams are out and about in the city on the other days, said the head of the traffic department, Thomas Model. Officials from other federal states as well as from Austria and Switzerland also take part in the controls. The Hamburg police have almost 700 trained drug detectors.

In the first half of 2026, almost 100 traffic accidents were recorded in Hamburg in which the influence of drugs played a role. More than 300 other accidents occurred because drivers were under the influence of alcohol. “That’s a number that concerns me,” said Model.

Last year the number of alcohol-related accidents fell by 2.4 percent to 764. The number of accidents under the influence of drugs remained virtually unchanged at 250 compared to the previous year, according to the police's traffic accident record.

The consumption of cannabis is often trivialized, criticized Model. However, it is dangerous to drive a vehicle under the influence of intoxicants. The inhibition threshold to get behind the wheel or get on an e-scooter after consuming cannabis is decreasing.

The legal limit is 3.5 nanograms of the active ingredient THC (tetrahydrocannabinol) per milliliter of blood serum. According to the ADAC, a violation could result in a fine of 500 euros, as well as a month's driving ban and two points in Flensburg. There is an absolute ban on cannabis for novice drivers.