Fewer drunk drivers were nabbed in Nanaimo this holiday season, and the RCMP is hopeful that means more people are relying on cabs or designated drivers to get home safely.
Out of the hundreds of vehicles stopped at roadblocks, 11 drivers were found to be impaired by alcohol or drugs between Dec. 15 and Jan. 1, according to RCMP statistics.
Eight people were issued 90-day immediate roadside prohibitions and two received 24-hour prohibitions for drugs. One driver who refused a roadside test was issued a 90-day prohibition.
Const. Gary O’Brien, spokesman for Nanaimo RCMP, said four of the eight impaired drivers were caught on the morning of New Year’s Day.
“These are people who partied all night,” O’Brien said. “They may have stopped partying [before they drove home], but that much liquor is going to stay in the system for a significant amount of time.”
In the same period in 2017, 20 impaired drivers were caught. Police issued 12 90-day driving bans, three people refused breath samples, two drivers received three-day driving bans, one driver received a 24-hour suspension.
In two cases, Criminal Code impaired investigations were initiated.
“We like that it’s a downward trend,” O’Brien said.
Nanaimo RCMP will be closely watching the statistics next year to see if the trend continues.
“When you get three years back to back, that’s a pretty good sign that the message is getting across,” he said.
Victoria police removed 49 impaired drivers from the streets in the month of December, a small dip compared with the 54 drunk or high drivers nabbed in December 2017.
“While there was small reduction, 49 is still far too many,” said Victoria police spokesman Const. Matt Rutherford.
Nanaimo Mounties also noticed a significant increase in sober designated drivers ferrying partygoers to and from festivities, O’Brien said. “Being a DD means not drinking at all, and our officers were very impressed to see this happening.”
O’Brien said in previous years, designated drivers would admit to having two beers.
“That is not cool,” he said.
“A designated driver has to be sober. They make a commitment to get their friends home safe.”
Officers made sure to move roadblocks every few hours to prevent drivers from taking alternate routes to avoid police scrutiny, O’Brien said.
He said the overwhelming majority of drivers were thankful and appreciative that officers were on the road making sure people got home safely.
The capital region’s Integrated Road Safety Unit did not have statistics available Friday, but Staff Sgt. Ron Cronk, who heads the unit, said traffic officers were out in force the entire month of December, as well on New Year’s Day.
Cronk said officers were stationed on key roads at 3 a.m. on Jan. 1 and took the keys off three drivers who blew over the legal limit and three drivers who blew a warn, or over a 0.05 blood alcohol level.
Anyone who sees a suspected impaired driver is asked to call 911 immediately. If you are driving, pull over to the side of the road when safe to do so, make the call and provide information on the vehicle plate number, description of the vehicle and the last known direction of travel.
