December is Impaired Driving Awareness Month
In conjunction with the Alberta Traffic Safety Action Plan the Morinville RCMP will be focusing attention on impaired driving.
Impaired driving is a crime and it will be treated as such. Know the limits. Know your limits. Drivers who choose to drive impaired face not only the possibility of killing themselves, their friends or someone else, but also very serious legal, financial, social and other consequences. Make the safe choice for everyone – don’t drive if you have been drinking, using drugs or are fatigued. Plan ahead how you’re going to get home. There are alternatives to impaired driving. If you encounter a suspected impaired driver, pull over and record the vehicle licence plate number and dial 911 anywhere in the province. Your ability to drive is not only affected by alcohol but also by drugs, fatigue and distractions.
Facts to Know:
· Drivers with a Criminal Code charge (blood alcohol concentration greater than .08):
· 1st Charge – immediate licence suspension until the criminal charge is resolved and a 3 day vehicle seizure.
· 2nd & Subsequent Charges – immediate licence suspension until the criminal charge is resolved and a seven day vehicle seizure.
· Addictions assessment may be required.
· If you are convicted, your driver licence suspension periods are as follows:
· First time offenders automatically receive a one-year suspension.
· Second time offenders receive a three-year suspension.
· Third time offenders receive a five-year suspension.
· Drivers convicted of impaired driving causing injury or death, receive a mandatory five-year licence suspension. Drivers who are convicted of an alcohol-related Criminal Code charge will be required to attach alcohol sensors to their vehicle ignitions before they are allowed to drive again:
· 1st conviction – one-year
· 2nd conviction – three-years
· 3rd & subsequent convictions – five-years
· Drivers with a blood alcohol concentration of .05 - .08:
· 1st Offence – immediate three-day licence suspension, three day vehicle seizure.
· 2nd Offence – immediate 15day licence suspension, seven day vehicle seizure, remedial course and a possible hearing with Alberta Transportation Safety Board.
· 3rd & Subsequent Offences – immediate 30-day licence suspension, seven day vehicle seizure, remedial course and mandatory hearing with Alberta Transportation Safety Board.
· Drivers in the Graduated Driver’s Licence program:
· Zero Alcohol permitted.
· 1st & Subsequent Offences – immediate 30-day licence suspension and seven day vehicle seizure.
· Parents need to be aware that, if their vehicle is seized for seven days because their son/daughter violated the GDL Zero Alcohol Tolerance condition, hardship is not grounds for appeal.
· Police may disqualify you from driving for 24 hours if they believe your ability to safely operate a motor vehicle is affected by drugs, alcohol, medical condition or physical ability. Police may also seize your vehicle for 24 hours.
· Designated drivers should not consume any alcohol or use any drugs.
How many people are killed or injured in collisions involving drinking drivers?
From 2009 to 2013, on average each year almost 90 people were killed and 1,330 people were injured in collisions involving at least one driver who had consumed alcohol prior to the crash. Specifically, in 2013, 80 people were killed and 1,133 were injured.
Other Facts:
On average over the past five years, approximately 8,600 people were convicted of impaired driving in Alberta each year.
On average in Alberta, one in five drivers involved in fatal collisions have been drinking prior to the collision. This compares to an average of about one in 20 drivers involved in injury collisions. As the severity of the collision increases, so does the likelihood the collision will involve a drinking driver.
The highest numbers of casualty collisions involving alcohol occur during warmer weather months (May to October).
The most casualty collisions involving alcohol occur on the weekends. The most likely time period for these collisions, on any day of the week, is between 11 p.m. and 3 a.m.
Morinville RCMP is asking that the public please take the above information seriously. Our hope is to have everyone travel our roadways in a safe and responsible manner.
Cpl Sheldon ROBB
Morinville RCMP
780-939-4520
Dan Antoniuk
SRCWA
Communications Director
Zone 9 Director
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