the OPP
The holiday season is approaching fast and the OPP would like to remind motorists of the danger of mixing alcohol with driving.
This year’s annual Festive R.I.D.E. (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) campaign began Friday (Nov. 27) and runs through to Saturday, Jan. 2.
As of Nov. 22, 271 people have died on OPP-patrolled roadways—42 of which were alcohol-related collisions.
The most effective tool in the reduction of these kinds of senseless deaths on our roads is prevention.
While the OPP continues to conduct R.I.D.E. spot checks throughout the year, the Festive R.I.D.E. initiative has proven to be an effective deterrent and an important tool in educating the driving public about the dangers of driving while impaired.
During the five-week initiative last year, OPP officers stopped 884,729 vehicles at roadside checkpoints.
As a result, 319 people were arrested and charged with alcohol-related offences.
Officers also issued a total of 784 12-hour suspensions and issued 353 90-day Administrative Drivers Licence Suspensions.
Since May, under the Safe Roads for a Safer Ontario Act, the former 12-hour administrative suspension for drivers whose blood alcohol concentration exceeds .05 mg has been replaced with a graded licence suspension period that includes a three-day suspension for a first offence, a seven-day suspension for a second offence, and 30 days for subsequent suspensions.
“Drinking and driving is a serious threat to public safety and remains the leading cause of criminal death in Canada,” said OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino.
“The tragic loss of life, and the burden on the health care system that results, touches every one of us at some point in our lives,” he added.
Visit www.opp.ca for regular updates of the results on the 2009 Festive R.I.D.E. program.
