Can you have weed in your car in BC?

Under BC's Cannabis Control and Licensing Act, a driver can't operate a vehicle with cannabis in it unless one of these is true:

• it's in the packaging it was sold in, and that packaging has never been opened
• it's somewhere the driver and passengers can't readily reach, such as the trunk
• it's a cannabis plant that isn't budding or flowering

"Operating" includes having care or control of a stopped or parked car, not only driving it. Each adult in the car can carry up to 30 grams of dried cannabis or the equivalent.

Unopened products from a licensed store can ride anywhere. Once a package is open, put it in the trunk. A glovebox, centre console or door pocket sits within reach, so it doesn't count. In a hatchback or SUV with no separate trunk, keep open products sealed in a bag as far back in the cargo area as you can.

BC bans consuming cannabis in a vehicle, and that covers eating an edible as well as smoking or vaping. It applies to passengers as much as drivers, and to a car parked on a public road as much as one on the highway. A driver also can't drive knowing a passenger is smoking or vaping.

A motorhome, camper or trailer used as your home for the night is the one exception. You can use cannabis inside it while it's parked where camping is allowed, but not on a highway or an industrial road.

Driving while impaired by cannabis is a crime in Canada, and the Criminal Code sets blood limits for THC:

• 2 to 5 nanograms per millilitre: a fine of up to $1,000
• 5 nanograms or more: a minimum $1,000 fine and up to 10 years in prison
• 2.5 nanograms or more combined with a blood alcohol of 50 mg or more: the same as 5 nanograms

Police can test your saliva at the roadside, run a field sobriety test and call in a drug recognition expert. In BC they can also take your licence for 24 hours on signs of impairment alone, or for 90 days at 5 nanograms, and impound the car for 30 days.

Learner and Novice drivers in BC face zero tolerance: any THC in your system brings an immediate 12-hour licence suspension. If you hold an L or N, don't drive after using cannabis at all.

BC Highway Patrol runs impaired-driving checks on the Sea-to-Sky Highway, especially on busy weekends and through the summer. Pack cannabis in the trunk before you leave, and wait until you've parked for the night. Edibles can last 6 hours or more, so a gummy at lunch can still affect you on the drive home. Provincial parks along the route only allow cannabis smoking where tobacco is allowed.

The same rules apply on the car deck, and BC Ferries bans all cannabis use on its vessels and at terminals. Our guide to bringing cannabis on BC Ferries covers the crossing.

Coastal Green Main Street, at 208 E 16th Ave, has free parking in the lot behind the building, which makes it an easy stop on the way out of town. Everything leaves the store sealed, so it can ride anywhere in the car until you open it. See hours for both stores on our Vancouver dispensary page. For the rest of BC's rules, read whether weed is legal in Vancouver.