One person was arrested for impaired driving, and three others had their licence suspended, during a recent off-road vehicle enforcement operation in southeastern New Brunswick.
On January 24, 2020, members of the Southeast District RCMP and the New Brunswick Department of Public Safety's Off-Road Vehicle Enforcement Unit stopped about 40 vehicles on trails in the Sackville and Memramcook areas, in an effort to reduce impaired driving on public trails.
A 53-year-old man was arrested for impaired driving; three people had their licence suspended for blowing a warning on a breath test; and two off-road vehicles were towed. Several tickets were issued for offences such as not wearing a helmet and operating an off-road vehicle on a roadway. An investigation is ongoing into an ATV operator who refused a breath demand and fled from police.
"Driving an off-road vehicle while impaired by alcohol or drugs is equally as dangerous and illegal as doing so in any other motor vehicle," says Sgt. Paul Gagné of the Southeast District RCMP. "Every year we see people seriously injured and killed on our trails as a result of impaired driving or excessive speed – most of which could have been prevented."
The RCMP and its public safety partners conduct regular, strategic enforcement operations throughout the year, in an effort to keep our trails and roadways safe.