Staff
The holiday season has ended and so has the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) Festive Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (RIDE) campaign, which ran from November 23 to January 2.
During the approximately five-week campaign, OPP officers conducted 1,584 RIDE checks across West Region.
Of the 502 drivers checked, 135 were charged with Impaired Operation (alcohol), Over 80 milligrams, or Refusal under the Criminal Code on OPP-patrolled roads in Ontario in West Region.
Of the 384 drivers on those same OPP-patrolled roads who registered within the warn range (alcohol), 110 were charged in West Region.
Ten of the 37 drivers charged with Impaired Operation (drug) or Refusal under the Criminal Code were travelling on West Region OPP-patrolled roads.
Officers performed Standardized Field Sobriety Tests on 16 drivers in West Region, while 14 drivers required a Drug Recognition Expert evaluation in West Region during the campaign.
“The new year presents all motorists with the opportunity to play their part in traffic safety. Together, we can reduce those numbers and create safer roadways across our region,” noted Superintendent Catherine Yeandle-Slater, Director of Operations, West Region OPP.
The OPP West Region area includes Brant, Bruce, Chatham-Kent, Elgin, Essex, Grey, Haldimand, Huron, Lambton, Middlesex, Norfolk, Oxford, Perth, and Wellington Counties, sharing several of those areas with municipal police service partners.
