Nanaimo RCMP reported a decrease in impaired driving charges and Immediate Roadside Prohibitions (IRPs) issued in 2024 compared to 2023. However, authorities suggest staffing shortages, including injuries and investigations into fatal collisions, may contribute to this decline.
Mounties in Squamish, B.C., say they have recovered stolen BC Parks and search and rescue equipment that was stolen in October and November. The RCMP logo is seen in Surrey, B.C., on Thursday, March 16, 2023. Nanaimo RCMP say it saw and charged fewer impaired drivers on the roads in 2024 compared to 2023, but suggested the total may not represent a decline in impaired driving, but could reflect a staffing issue. On Thursday, Jan.
9, Nanaimo RCMP released 2024 impaired driving statistics which showed officers issued fewer Immediate Roadside Prohibitions (IRPs) compared to 2023. In 2024, officers issued 343 IRPs compared to 501 in 2023. Additionally, officers issued nine impaired driving criminal charges in 2024 compared to 26 in 2023. While the number of incidents show a decline since 2023, Nanaimo RCMP Reserve Const. Gary O’Brien isn’t convinced it’s something to celebrate just yet.“This reduction may be attributed to less proactive traffic enforcement being carried out by officers assigned to the Municipal Traffic Unit,” stated O’Brien adding, “Their Unit numbers have recently been depleted due to various injuries and their officers being tasked with investigating several fatal collisions, that are complex and time consuming.” “We would like to think that local drivers were getting the message about not driving while impaired but that’s probably not the case,” said O’Brien. Here’s what other Island detachments reported from 2024 Compared to Nanaimo RCMP issuing 343 IRPs in 2024, that same year, the Saanich Police Department stopped a record-setting 628 impaired drivers, up more than a third from the previous record of 468 set in 2023. Meanwhile, Victoria Police say they’ve seen close to the five-year average, with 277 impaired drivers removed, slightly below the average of 303 seen over the past half decade. In late December 2024, West Shore RCMP had impaired driving stats compiled between Jan. 1 and Aug. 31 2024. In that jurisdiction, Mounties say they had nabbed 382 impaired drivers over the first eight months of the year, putting it on track to surpass the total of 423 seen in all 12 months of 2023
IMPAIRED DRIVING RCMP STAFFING ISSUES TRAFFIC ENFORCEMENT NANAIMO
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