Impaired Driving = the operation of a motor vehicle by a person whose ability to operate it is impaired by alcohol or a drug. In the case of alcohol, impairment is said to occur when the concentration of alcohol in the person's blood exceeds 80 milligrams in the 100 millilitres of blood. .
Offences Involving Motor Vehicles .
It is generally the responsibility of the provincial government to regulate the use of roads and waterways within their jurisdiction. For example, speed limits, regulations regarding turns, and general "rules of the road" fall under the authority of each province. However, for those actions in which the use of a motor vehicle creates a risk of injury or death, the federal government uses its authority to make a federal law. The Criminal Code includes a number of offences addressing the use of motor vehicles, including: dangerous operation of a motor vehicle (s. 249); failure to stop when involved in an accident (s.252); driving while disqualified (s.259); and impaired operation of a motor vehicle (s. 253). Many of these Criminal Code offences are similar to offences outlined in provincial statutes; the Criminal Code offence is always considered a more serious one. The UCR (Uniform Crime Report) records include only reported incidents that violate traffic offences identified in the Criminal Code.
In 1998, police reported 140 536 incidents involving Criminal Code traffic crimes, resulting in a rate 10 percent below that of the previous year (464 per 100 000 population compared with 517 in 1997). Impaired driving accounted for 62 percent of these incidents, while failure to stop or remain at the scene of an accident accounted for 28 percent, and driving while prohibited made up 10 percent.
The rate of impaired driving charges has been declining steadily since 1981. In that year, the rate was 859 per 100 000 (70 587 incidents), or a drop of about 65 percent. These changes resulted from a number of factors, including changes in public attitudes as well as trends in police enforcement measures such as R.
