Abbotsford police skill-up to crack down on impaired drivers

A dozen Abbotsford, B.C., police officers are wrapping up a week of in-depth training on how to catch impaired drivers.

The training session comes after a weekend in which the department reported an alarming spike in impaired drivers on the road.

“It’s frustrating to see our impaired driving numbers continue to rise; 19 in one weekend is significant,” Abbotsford police spokesperson Sgt. Paul Walker told Global News.

“Ultimately, we want to see none.”

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The dozen officers — some veterans of the force, and others new recruits fresh out of the Justice Academy — are being trained in a trio of techniques designed to catch people impaired by drugs or alcohol.

One of the tests is an eye exam that looks for involuntary movements, a telltale sign of impairment.

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Others are “psychophysical” exams that test a person’s ability to follow directions while completing physical tasks.

“A sober person is not going to struggle with these whatsoever. They are so simple and straightforward that they should be able to complete it without much issue whatsoever,” explained Const. Scott McLure, with the Abbotsford police Traffic Enforcement Unit.

“An impaired person, though, even the simplest of tasks is going to have their attention divided between a number of instructions we give them and it’s going to make it very difficult for them to remember how to complete the test and their balance and coordination is something else we are going to be looking at.”

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The in-depth course had trainees practicing alongside their colleagues before live subjects who had consumed alcohol were brought in.

Abbotsford police say they’ve already taken 650 impaired drivers off the road this year.

They are now preparing to ramp up enforcement heading into the holiday season, as police in Abbotsford and across B.C. conduct annual Counterattack roadblocks.

“We want to have our roads safe, the Lower Mainland roads safe,” Walker said.

“Police collectively across the province will be out there, ensuring that people making poor choices are located and held accountable.”