With the holiday season coming up, Central Region Ontario Provincial Police are launching the Festive RIDE (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) campaign.
The initiative to stop impaired drivers is in partnership with OPP, the Barrie Police Service, the South Simcoe Police Service, Mothers Against Drunk Driving Simcoe County and Victim Services of Simcoe County.
Police say impaired driving continues to be an ongoing issue in the region.
“Four of our five fatal collisions this year involved drugs or alcohol. In the preceding two years, we have had several other impaired driving cause death collisions,” said acting chief John Van Dyke of the South Simcoe Police Service.
“Our message this holiday season — and year-round — is clear: Drive sober or don’t drive. Make this a memorable Christmas for happy reasons.”
In 2022, OPP officers in Central Region issued 1,757 impaired driving charges and investigated 450 alcohol or drug-related roadway collisions.
Of the impaired driving incidents, seven were fatal and 109 resulted in injury.
“Impaired driving is a choice made by a person who knows the possibility of irrevocable and life-long harm, but somehow believes this will not happen to them. For the victim who is killed or injured for life in an impaired driving collision, this was not their choice or that of their family,” said Marie McCallum, executive director of Victim Services of Simcoe County.
Police are urging people who plan to drink or consume drugs to arrange a safe way home, such as a designated driver, taxi, ride share or public transit.
The Festive RIDE campaign, which runs from Nov. 17, 2022, until Jan. 2, 2023, is led by the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police and involves a collaboration among Ontario police services to keep roads free of alcohol-impaired and drug-impaired drivers.
During the campaign, officers will be highly visible as they conduct RIDE initiatives 24 hours a day, seven days a week, throughout the province.