Issued by ICBC

While attitudes toward drinking and driving have changed considerably over the years, 86 lives are still lost every year in B.C., representing more than a quarter of all car crash fatalities.*

That’s why the B.C. government, police and ICBC are urging drivers to plan ahead and make smart decisions to get home safely this holiday season. Starting today, CounterAttack roadchecks will be set up by police across the province to keep impaired drivers off our roads throughout December.

[sam id=”15″ codes=”true”]”Every holiday season we see people who think they’re okay to drive but end up causing life-changing crashes,” said Chief Constable Neil Dubord, Chair of the B.C. Association of Chiefs of Police Traffic Safety Committee. “That’s why officers across the province are dedicated to keeping impaired drivers off our roads. We can all help prevent these crashes by always planning a safe ride home. Plan ahead!”

ICBC is helping to prevent impaired driving this December with an education campaign, funding for CounterAttack roadchecks and promotion of designated drivers with businesses, sports facilities and community groups.

On average, 13 people are killed in crashes involving impaired driving on Vancouver Island every year.

Get more stats and facts from ICBC’s infographic and learn more about the CounterAttack campaign on icbc.com.

*Based on five year average. Crashes and injured victims from ICBC data (2009 to 2013); fatal victims from police data (2009 to 2013). Impaired is defined to include alcohol, illicit drugs and medicines.

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