January 7, 2015
1641
(HURON COUNTY, ON) – During the OPP Festive RIDE campaign, from Nov. 24, 2014, to Jan. 2, 2015, OPP officers laid 593 impaired charges and issued 485 Warn Range suspensions.
When comparing the numbers to last year, the OPP is disappointed to see little change between this season’s campaign and the last one. During the 2013-14 Festive RIDE campaign, the OPP laid 587 impaired charges and issued 504 Warn Range suspensions. Three people lost their lives in impaired-related road crashes over the 2013-14 campaign.
OPP officers worked around the clock during the 2014-15 campaign, conducting more than 8,000 RIDE check stops throughout the province. These enforcement efforts, alone, are not enough to eliminate impaired driving and the threat it poses to the lives of innocent people.
Locally, Huron County OPP officers conducted 260 RIDE checkpoints during the Festive RIDE campaign. 17 drivers were charged with Impaired Driving and two more were charged with Refusal to Provide a Breath Sample. Three Warn Range suspensions were served on drivers during the campaign. Of note, three of the drivers charged with Impaired Driving were involved in motor vehicle collisions.
Besides calling on all motorists to refrain from driving while impaired, the OPP counts on all citizens to be valued road-safety partners and intervene when they suspect that someone is driving or about to drive after consuming alcohol or drugs.
“A driver who is impaired by alcohol or drugs is a driver who does not deserve to operate a motor vehicle alongside drivers who are responsible," says OPP deputy commissioner Brad Blair, provincial commander, Traffic Safety and Operational Support. "Public intervention and continued education by both the police and valued community stakeholders, is the only way that we, as a society, can continue to reduce occurrences involving impaired operation. Road safety is a shared responsibility and by working together, we can continue to make a difference."
The OPP appreciates and recognizes the many Ontario drivers who did not drive over the holidays while impaired by drugs or alcohol. The OPP also thanks those who volunteered to be a designated driver, offered to put guests up for the night or called them a cab after they had been drinking, called 9-1-1 to report an impaired driver to police, or took some other action that helped take an impaired driver off the road over the holidays.
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