This week Alberta cinched the rules on its impaired driving policies to ensure no drunk driver slips under the radar at check stops. Starting Dec. 18 every driver passing a police checkstop could be made to provide a breath sample even if there is no indication the driver is drunk or under the influence of drugs. The new Mandatory Alcohol Screening (MAS) is part of Bill C-46 legislation and is one more tool for police to detect and remove any instances of impaired driving whether from drugs or alcohol. “A large and credible international evidence base suggests MAS is one of the most effective road safety measures available and that it has resulted in significant and sustained reductions in impaired driving and related deaths and injuries,” said Chief Mark Neufeld, President of the Alberta Association of Chiefs of Police. RCMP said the screening is part of the regular roadside compliance check and should only take a few minutes to complete. “These are short interactions that we need to have because Canadians require and deserve protection from all impaired drivers on the roads,” said Superintendent Gary Graham, Alberta RCMP Traffic Services. “When MAS is used as widely as operationally practical, it will help us accomplish our public safety goals, while fully protecting the public’s legal and constitutional rights.” In 2017, there were 225 incidents of impaired driving in Cochrane, according to Statistics Canada. At the start of December, RCMP across the province participated in National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day which saw 11, 895 vehicles checked, 23 charges laid for impaired driving by alcohol and two for impaired driving by drug. Back in April, the province implemented harsher roadside consequences for impaired driving. Officers can now issue a 90-day suspension for drivers with a blood alcohol level above .08 followed by a mandatory participation in a one-year ignition interlock program where the driver would have to pass a breathlyzer test to start their car each time. If the driver refuses to participate, the licence suspension will remain in place during the one-year term. Drivers will continue to be subject to criminal charges and all the associated penalties imposed by the courts, in addition to the provincial consequences. The change to legislation make drinking and driving a serious criminality instead of an ordinary one raising the jail term to a maximum of 10 years, up from the previous five. Refusing a breathalyzer can incur the same penalty as an impaired driving conviction. The legislation is hoped to further deter Albertans from impaired driving. In a news release, the RCMP stated impaired driving is avoidable and illegal and implored drivers to plan ahead and appoint a designated driver.
