The number of motorists convicted for driving under the influence has quadrupled since 2017.
DVLA figures show around 20,000 motorists have been convicted after using substances in the last 12 months.
This equates to approximately 60 people per working day of the year. In 2017 this figure was 17 people every working day.
The police caught 40 teenagers aged between 15 and 16 driving under the influence of drugs, while the oldest driver banned was a 74-year-old woman.
The most common age for disqualification is 25 and most offenders are men. There were 18,175 men banned from January 2018 to March 2019, compared with 1,440 women.
West Midlands police and crime commissioner David Jamieson said: “These figures are staggering. The reality is drug driving is a hidden epidemic. A lot of people think they can get away with it because so few police are on the roads and the likelihood of being stopped is really low. What we need is tougher enforcement.”
The recently published statistics reflect an increase in enforcement and may include those motorists convicted for driving under the influence of prescription drugs.
Driving under the influence of drugs carries a one-year minimum ban, an unlimited fine and up to six months in prison. The details appear on your licence for 11 years.
It is illegal to drive in Scotland, England and Wales with legal drugs in your body if it impairs your driving.
