Car deaths in B.C. take dive after drunk driving crackdown

According to the data found on BC's data catalogue, motor vehicle fatalities has dropped by 22.2% in British Columbia from 2010 to 2011.  After seeing the massive drop the decline of fatalities continues to persist through to 2014.   A motor vehicle fatality is characterized as a road user that was injured in a collision involving a motor vehicle on a public highway and died anytime within 30 days of the crash from their injuries.  This data excludes all deaths that occurred on forest service roads, industrial roads and private driveways as well as fatal victims of off-road snow mobile accidents, homicides and suicides.

The reason for this drop can be linked to the introduction of stricter impaired driving laws in B.C. in 2010. 


These changes were enacted by the Motor Vehicle Act (MVA) in 2010 and take drivers off the road if they fail a breathalyzer test where their sample is north of 0.08 per cent they will receive a 90-day driving ban and a $500 dollar fine.  Even more stringently so, drivers caught once between the level of 0.05 to 0.08 on a breathalyzer test will face bans and fines and an increase in the length of the ban and the cost of the fine for each additional offence.  This is known as the "warn" range.

These new tools for police officers and especially the new "warn" range is what Solicitor General Michael de Jong hoped would help curb repeat offenders from staying on the bottle while they drive.  According to de Jong there has been an increase in drinking and driving in British Columbia for some time and with the implementation of the Motor Vehicle Act he is setting a province wide goal of 35 per cent by the end of 2013.  These changes finally came about to honour the death of Alexa Middelaer, a 4-year old who was killed by a drunk driver. 

After seeing the first years results, Langley's RCMP "E" Division Traffic Services was awarded the 2011 National Police Award for Traffic Safety where they saw a decrease of 30 per cent decrease in roadside fatalities.  And now with just 4 years since these new laws and road side assistance programs being put in place there has been an estimated 52 percent decrease in impaired driving fatalities.  The average found of drinking-and-driving related deaths is thought to be now at 54 per year whereas before it was 112.  This drop in the average mimics this data found and portrayed on the above chart.

Interestingly enough, even though the motor vehicle act and immediate roadside prohibition program have undeniably yielded results in dropping the rate of fatalities for vehicles, the laws have been met with criticism from some saying that the new rules gives the police officer to much power.  An article done by the Huffington Post shows critics listing examples that the banning process that is enforced onto a driver under the police officer's discretion is immediate and in the cases of a breathalyzer malfunction or an officer's mistake, the plaintiff is left with no way to remove the ban during his or her's sentence.

While the program seems to have it's faults and inconveniences for people who toe the line with having a few drinks and then deciding to drive, the drop in impaired driving fatalities and total driving fatalities is enough to deem the new regulations as effective.