Woman charged with impaired driving after travelling wrong way on Perimeter Highway

WINNIPEG -

A woman has been charged with impaired driving after RCMP said she travelled the wrong way on the Perimeter Highway Sunday morning.

RCMP said officers received multiple calls regarding a vehicle driving on the wrong side of the highway around 7:50 a.m.

Among those calls was Debra Vandekerkhove, who stopped and grabbed video of the car.

"I noticed after the Lagmodiere underpass a driver on the opposite side of the highway going the wrong way," said Vandekerkhove. "I started to film after I noticed three or four other vehicles ahead of me trying to get the attention of the driver, so I just sat back and slowed down to record what was happening."

In Vandekerkhove's video, a car can be seen weaving through oncoming traffic.

"The drivers that were on the right side of the road, travelling east and all the other drivers on the other side were terrific. They were flashing their lights and hitting their horns. It was louder than police sirens; that's how many people were trying to stop her," said Vandekerkhove.

According to RCMP, an officer was able to stop the car on the South Perimeter near the intersection of Provincial Road 330.

RCMP said a 35-year-old woman from Winnipeg was arrested for impaired driving after providing samples of her breath that RCMP said were twice the legal limit. She was served with several tickets under the Highway Traffic Act, including a serious offence notice, as well as being released for a court appearance on impaired driving charges.

As for Vandekerkhove, she said better signage on the highway could possibly help in the future.

"I used to live in the area. I know how difficult and confusing it can be to get on the wrong side of the highway. I did it when I first moved from Alberta, but luckily there was no traffic, and I realized my mistake right away."