VICTORIA – People are over-reacting to the new penalties imposed on drivers who blow in the "warn" range of a roadside blood alcohol test, Public Safety Minister Rich Coleman says. New penalties were imposed Sept. 20, giving police options beyond the 24-hour roadside suspension. A blood alcohol reading in the "warn" range between 0.05 and 0.08 per cent can result in a three-day driving ban, a $200 "administrative penalty" and another $250 fee to have a driver's licence reinstated. Drivers may also have their car impounded for three days and be billed for towing and storage, without ever exceeding the legal limit. For those who exceed 0.08, steeper on-the-spot fines and 30-day vehicle seizures are now within the discretion of police, in addition to charges if they proceed with prosecution. Coleman said Monday that since the new penalties took effect, it's become an "urban legend" that people can't have even one drink if they're going to drive home. That's having an impact on restaurant and pub business that was not intended when the measure was imposed, he said.
More than 1,400 drivers were nailed with tougher penalties in the first 20 days of the crackdown under the new rules. Before that, officers had issued 24-hour roadside suspensions to as many as 40,000 drivers a year, but those did not include financial penalties or vehicles towed to an impound lot. Coleman said the public needs more education on the roadside penalties for those under 0.08, and when it comes to seizing vehicles, police may as well. "If the vehicle can be parked legally somewhere safe, or if there's another person who can drive, it doesn't have to be towed under the legislation," he said. Coleman has asked ICBC to help educate the public in their annual Counterattack advertising program that is run each Christmas season. He said demonstrations where reporters go to pubs with police, have a drink or two, then get tested with a roadside screening device would also be useful. The new penalties were placed in legislation last spring, and if they are to be changed, amendments would have to be debated in the B.C. legislature in the new year.
1 comment:
Finally something with real teeth in the law and they want to amend it. Guess who wants to run for party leader?
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