In response to an increase in drunk driving offences, the province is introducing tougher regulations around those with alcohol under the legal limit found in their system.
Drivers caught once in the "warn" range (between 0.05 and 0.08 per cent blood alcohol content) in a five-year period will face an immediate, three-day driving ban and a $200 fine; a second time, a seven-day ban and a $300 fine; and a third, a 30-day ban and a $400 fine.
Under changes to the Motor Vehicle Act (MVA), drivers who provide a failing breath sample above 0.08 per cent or refuse to provide a breath sample at the roadside will face an immediate, 90-day driving ban and a $500 fine.
As well, they will have their vehicle impounded for 30 days. They may also face criminal charges.
According to a provincial news release, research shows that driving with a blood alcohol content in that range means a driver is seven times more likely to be in a fatal crash than if they have no alcohol in their body.
In addition, drivers who blow once in the "fail" range, or three times within five years in the "warn" range, will be required to participate in the rehabilitative responsible driver program.
They must also use an ignition interlock device, which tests a driver's breath for alcohol every time they operate their vehicle, for one year.
"Despite increased enforcement and significant efforts to promote awareness, we've begun to see a rise in impaired driving across British Columbia," solicitor general Michael de Jong announced Tuesday (April 27). "That trend is unacceptable and that's why we're bringing in these new laws: to get impaired drivers off the road with clear, swift and severe penalties."
In memory of Alexa Middelaer, de Jong announced a provincial goal: to reduce alcohol-impaired driving fatalities by 35 per cent by the end of 2013. Middelaer was four when she was killed by an alleged drunk driver in Delta two years ago.
