B.C. strengthens programs for motorists with prohibitions for drinking and drug-affected driving

British Columbia’s Ministry of Public Safety & Solicitor General said on Wednesday that new regulations are in place to “clarify and toughen” the consequences of drinking and drug-affected driving in the province.

Under the new program, drivers with certain serious prohibitions for drinking and drug-affected driving are now required to participate in “mandatory remedial programs designed to prevent this high risk and irresponsible behaviour from reoccurring,” the ministry said in a press release.

Once a mandatory referral is made, drivers will be required to participate in the Responsible Driver Program (RDP), which focuses on education and counselling, and/or the Ignition Interlock Program (IIP), for which a device is installed in the vehicle to prevent drivers from driving if they have consumed alcohol. “Research shows a 90% reduction in repeat drinking and driving while the Ignition Interlock Program device is installed,” the release added.

“These measures will help both deter and prevent unsafe drivers from getting back on our roads,” said Mike Morris, Minister of Public Safety and Solicitor General, adding that “there will no longer be financial or hardship considerations to exempt high-risk drivers from these remedial programs.”

The new regulations apply to drivers caught driving while affected by drugs or alcohol who accumulate between six and 16 remedial program points within five years, the ministry explained.

The ministry has reported that since the 2010 implementation of the Immediate Roadside Prohibition (IRP) program, there has been an “estimated 260 lives saved and a 52% reduction in alcohol-related motor vehicle deaths.” In 2014 alone, drinking and driving contributed to the death of 61 people on B.C. roads.

Drivers who receive a 90-day IRP or accumulate points through repeat alcohol and drug-related driving events are required to participate in remedial programs. IRP’s administrative sanctions have seen a reduction of 6,000 Criminal Code impaired driving court cases per year since 2010, the ministry reported.

“These are firm but fair measures that address repetitive driving behaviours at the administrative level,” said Robert O’Neill, acting superintendent of Motor Vehicles, in the release. “Drivers who choose to drive under the influence of drugs or alcohol will face serious remedial program consequences that are recognized as efficient and successful in many jurisdictions in Canada and around the world.”