Police nab 75 drunk drivers during holiday season, Fredericton, N.B

New Brunswick RCMP have laid impaired driving charges against 75 people as a result of Operation Christmas 2010.

The three week campaign ran from December 9, 2010 through January 3, 2011. During that time, approximately 20,000 vehicles were checked during 189 traffic stop operations, carried out across the province.

“Impaired driving puts everyone on New Brunswick roadways at risk,” says Staff Sergeant Stéphane Caron, J Division Traffic Services Coordinator. “People have to realize the consequences, both for impaired drivers and their victims, are lifelong.”

In addition to the 75 impaired driving charges, police found 70 people not wearing their seatbelts, 289 cases of aggressive driving (speeding), 22 violations of the Liquor Control Act, and issued 484 written warnings.

During Operation Christmas, there were six fatal collisions in the province. Three of the victims were not wearing a seatbelt, and one was confirmed to have been impaired.

Operation Christmas is an annual initiative to improve safety on New Brunswick roadways. The focus of the 2010 campaign was on impaired driving and seatbelt use, due the fact that impaired driving-related collisions increased from 25 per cent in 2009 to nearly 40 per cent in 2010.