The SQ launches the national Drug-Alcohol operation

The SQ launches the national Drug-Alcohol operation

All Quebec police services, in collaboration with the Société de l’assurance automobile du Québec (SAAQ), will intensify their interventions, from today (November 27), until January 4, as part of a “concerted national operation targeting the ability to drive impaired by alcohol or drugs.”

In addition to the roadside checkpoints that will be held throughout Quebec, including the Pontiac, an awareness campaign will be deployed, in particular on the various social media platforms of police organizations and the SAAQ. This campaign aims to remind drivers of the consequences of being able to drive when impaired by alcohol, drugs or a combination of the two. The Sûreté du Québec (SQ) recalls that in the current health context, there will be no escort service during the holiday season.

The SQ insisted that despite the awareness campaigns, the police presence and the many options available to avoid getting behind the wheel, each year from 2014 to 2018, alcohol-related crashes caused on average:
• 90 deaths (26% of total annual deaths);
• 210 seriously injured (13% of the total seriously injured);
• 1,750 minor injuries on the roads of Quebec (5% of the total minor injuries).

From 2014 to 2018, among drivers who died in a road collision in Quebec:
• 36% of drivers had legal or illegal drugs in their blood;
• 21% of drivers had cannabis in their blood:
• 37% of those aged 16 to 24 had cannabis in their blood;
• 18% of those aged 25 and over had cannabis in their blood.

This concerted national operation is organized as part of a partnership between the SQ, the Montreal Police Department, the Association of Quebec Police Directors, the SAAQ and Contrôle Route Quebec.