'We need to stop this': WPS, RCMP stepping up enforcement to target impaired drivers
Manitoba RCMP and Winnipeg Police Service are teaming up to step up enforcement to catch impaired drivers on roadways.
The joint forces initiative is to mark National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day.
Officers with both the RCMP and the WPS will be targeting impaired drivers at different locations in and around Winnipeg, while Mounties will be doing further enforcement in rural Manitoba.
RCMP Inspector Joe Telus says in RCMP jurisdictions, 1,396 impaired drivers have been taken off the road so far this year.
“It's time to realize this is not about people being uneducated as to the risk. It is about people making choices, and some people are still making poor, poor ones,” he said.
The Winnipeg Police Service said it is also launching and operating its annual check stop program during December.
Inspector Doug Roxburgh, commander of the WPS central traffic division, said the 2021 check stop program revealed some ‘troubling numbers,’ with an average blood alcohol concentration that was double the legal limit.
“Our highest was 330 milligrams per cent. To put it in perspective, 350 milligrams per cent, we hospitalize people. It's problematic,” he said.
The average age of impaired drivers caught by WPS last year was 40. The youngest was 18, and the oldest was 66.
Roxburgh said 86 per cent of impaired drivers were male.
His division has seen some concerning numbers in 2022, as well, with an increase in serious or fatal collisions. The inspector noted they are investigating up to 40 collisions currently, resulting in 24 deaths.
“We need to stop this. We want everyone to have a safe holiday season,” he said.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Widow looking for answers after Quebec man dies in Texas Ironman competition
The widow of a Quebec man who died competing in an Ironman competition is looking for answers.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
World seeing near breakdown of international law amid wars in Gaza and Ukraine, Amnesty says
The world is seeing a near breakdown of international law amid flagrant rule-breaking in Gaza and Ukraine, multiplying armed conflicts, the rise of authoritarianism and huge rights violations in Sudan, Ethiopia and Myanmar, Amnesty International warned Wednesday as it published its annual report.
Photographer alleges he was forced to watch Megan Thee Stallion have sex and was unfairly fired
A photographer who worked for Megan Thee Stallion said in a lawsuit filed Tuesday that he was forced to watch her have sex, was unfairly fired soon after and was abused as her employee.
Amid concerns over 'collateral damage' Trudeau, Freeland defend capital gains tax change
Facing pushback from physicians and businesspeople over the coming increase to the capital gains inclusion rate, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his deputy Chrystia Freeland are standing by their plan to target Canada's highest earners.
U.S. Senate passes bill forcing TikTok's parent company to sell or face ban, sends to Biden for signature
The Senate passed legislation Tuesday that would force TikTok's China-based parent company to sell the social media platform under the threat of a ban, a contentious move by U.S. lawmakers that's expected to face legal challenges.
Wildfire southwest of Peace River spurs evacuation order
People living near a wildfire burning about 15 kilometres southwest of Peace River are being told to evacuate their homes.
U.S. Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote
The U.S. Senate has passed US$95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to President Joe Biden after months of delays and contentious debate over how involved the United States should be in foreign wars.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.