RCMP, Alberta Sheriffs, Fish and Wildlife and Commercial Vehicle Enforcement invited media out to Bragg Creek yesterday to witness a checkstop operation to kick off an enforcement blitz for the Victoria Day Long Weekend.
Sgt. Darrin Turnbull, of Alberta RCMP Traffic Services, said police and partner agencies wanted to get the word out that multiple checkstops will be setup throughout the long weekend and RCMP will be conducting mandatory drug and alcohol testing.
"We're trying to get the message out about safety. Safety when you're out in the mountains, in the mountain parks, safety while you're driving, to keep Albertans safe," he said. "One of our primary objectives on the RCMP side is looking for impaired drivers."
This writer inadvertently had the opportunity to experience the testing first hand when Tunrbull mistook another officer giving directions to the media rally point for waving my vehicle in for testing.
Following a few simple questions, including if a driver has consumed alcohol in the previous 20 minutes, the driver is asked to blow into a handheld device and a number indicating the level of intoxication pops up. Under the limit (mine was 0) and the car is tagged with a sticker and the driver can continue on, the entire process takes under a minute.
"We're doing mandatory alcohol screening of as many vehicles as we can coming through as quickly as we can," Turnbull said. "Over the entire long weekend there are going to be numerous checkstops throughout all of Alberta."
Turnbull said there will be a large enforcement presence in the "all the hot spots" such as the Cochrane, Waiparous and mountain areas heading into the national and provincial parks.
"The goal is by the end of the long weekend that no one is seriously injured or killed in a car crash. Last year we had four people die. Two people in motor vehicle accidents on the highway and two people in off-highway vehicle collisions. Four is way too many. One is too many. So we're hoping next week when we take a look at it nobody died."
Open liquor and intoxicated driving will be subject to a zero tolerance response, with police reminding drivers that cannabis is treated the same under the law as liquor when it comes to traffic enforcement.
"Anyone who is driving with open liquor, you will be getting ticketed. Anyone who provides a breath sample that's a caution on the instrument, that's a three-day day driving suspension and a three-day vehicle seizure. If you blow fail, you're going to be investigated for impaired driving," Turnbull warned. "We also have drug recognition experts looking for people impaired by any type of drug, cannabis or anything else," adding that includes prescription medication.
Though cannabis is legal now, Turnbull said officers will ensure if there is cannabis found in the vehicle that it was purchased lawfully from a government approved distributor.
"It cannot be from your local drug dealer. It has to be lawfully packaged. It's got to be, just like alcohol, out of reach, it's got to be sealed, it's got to be in the trunk," he said.
