The Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) works hard every day to ensure Ontario roads are kept safe from impaired driving offenders. This year’s Festive RIDE campaign, which launched this past weekend, is no exception.
Police officers across the province are now participating in holiday RIDE programs aimed at keeping drug and alcohol-impaired drivers off the roadways. The campaign began on Saturday, November 23rd, and will run until Thursday, January 2nd.
This is in response to newly-implemented impaired driving laws. Police officers with an approved roadside screening device lawfully pulling over a driver during a traffic stop can demand a breath sample without reasonable suspicion that the driver is intoxicated.
The OPP also has access to approved drug screening equipment with the ability to detect cannabis and cocaine in a driver’s saliva. The equipment is being used to enforce the province’s zero tolerance rule that applies to young, novice and commercial drivers suspected of being impaired with a substance.
Drivers impaired by any substance – alcohol or drugs – are putting themselves and others sharing the road at risk of serious harm. There have been more than 600 crash-related fatalities involving drivers under the influence of drugs or alcohol within the past decade on Ontario roads.
OPP Commissioner Thomas Carrique is hopeful these new laws and technology to combat impaired drivers will help police officers more than ever to keep the roadways safe.
Have You Been Injured in a Crash Caused By an Impaired Driver?
Impaired drivers willfully and needlessly endanger the lives of others. At Greg Monforton and Partners, our Windsor car accident lawyers are committed to fighting for the rights of injury victims and their loved ones.
Contact our firm today to review your situation and discuss your legal options in a free consultation. We do not get paid unless we are successful, so there are no upfront legal fees.
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