The number of people getting caught drinking and driving over the holiday season is on the decline, according to CounterAttack statistics compiled by the Coquitlam RCMP.
This year, 31 impaired drivers were taken off the road in the month of December, a decrease of 46 from last year's CounterAttack effort and significantly lower than the 131 arrested in 2009. Coquitlam RCMP Cpl. Jamie Chung said the numbers show that drivers are finding other ways to get home when they have had a few drinks over the holidays.
"We think that some of the people are getting the message," he said. "Not all of them, though, which is disappointing."
The number of crashes in the month of December is also down in recent years, Chung noted. In 2013, 31 collisions occurred, the same as in 2012, however down from the 41 recorded in 2011 and the 43 recorded in 2010.
Chung said that while not all crashes are related to alcohol, the numbers show that in general, Tri-City roads are getting safer during the holidays.
While the numbers have been trending downwards the last few seasons, Coquitlam RCMP Traffic Services Sgt. Dave said police will be keeping up the pressure.
"It's a positive change in the right direction, but there is much work to be done," he said. "Since impaired driving related fatalities and injuries are 100% preventable, we shouldn't even have one person dead or injured as a result of impaired driving."
The Drinking Driving CounterAttack program has been in existence for 35 years. Each December - a month known to see a statistical spike in drunk driving - police across the province increase the number of road checks they conduct to catch impaired motorists.
DRUNK DRIVING STATS FOR DECEMBER
Year # of Impaireds #of Crashes
2008 85 46
2009 131 39
2010 92 43
2011 71 41
2012 46 31
2013 31 31
