Yesterday, Niagara Regional Police say they conducted R.I.D.E. checkpoints in St. Catharines. Police headed out early this St. Patrick’s Day and were set up looking for impaired drivers by 2:00 p.m.
Traffic was very heavy during the afternoon and evening, with approximately 1000 drivers stopped and questioned about any alcohol consumption. With so many drivers being stopped, police were surprised to see that no one was arrested for impaired driving.
Police noticed that many of the drivers that entered the checkpoints were Taxicabs, as wells as Uber and designated drivers. Police did request 5 drivers to provide a sample of their breath for an analysis, however each of them provided samples in the acceptable range and were free to leave.
Police issued several tickets throughout the day, including one driver who was charged with stunting, after it was discovered that they were transporting a person in the trunk of their vehicle. This driver lost their licence and also had their vehicle towed and seized for 7 days.
Another driver entered the checkpoint and it was discovered that they were a suspended driver and their vehicle was not insured.
Aside from the several driving infractions, all drivers spoken to by the police during the St. Patrick’s Day R.I.D.E. program were either sober or consumed an acceptable amount of alcohol to drive their vehicles.
The Niagara Regional Police Service remain committed to reducing Impaired Driving Offences through education and the apprehension of offenders through enforcement programs like R.I.D.E. Impaired driving is still the leading criminal offence causing deaths in Canada.
This initiative has been made possible, in part, as a result of grant funding from the Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services as part of the Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (R.I.D.E) program.
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