Vancouver police say they’ve pulled 360 impaired drivers off the city’s roads during their annual summer crackdown — 100 more than at this point last year.
Police said the boost in numbers may be related to an increase in the number of officers staffing roadblocks, but say it also points to the continuing problem of impaired drivers on the road.
The counterattack crackdown ran from late June to late July.
“Some people just aren’t getting the message that impaired driving just isn’t worth it,” said VPD spokesperson Sgt. Jason Robillard.
WATCH: Why drug impaired driving charges haven’t been laid in B.C. since cannabis legalization
Police said of the 360 drivers taken off the road, 116 were given roadside suspensions, while 244 were issued with immediate roadside prohibitions.
Robillard said 25 of those prohibitions were due to drugs, but could not say how many specifically were related to cannabis.
No B.C. driver has been criminally charged with pot-impaired driving since cannabis was legalized last fall, according to a B.C. criminal lawyer.
The province says drivers have still been ticketed under the new regime.