Inspector Bernadine Chapman, head of traffic services for Nova Scotia’s RCMP, and Margie Baker of Broadway, which is also a member of MADD Pictou County, take part in a checkpoint on East River Road Friday as part of National Impaired Driving Enforcement Day. Sueann Musick – The News
Inspector Bernadine Chapman, who is in charge of traffic services program for RCMP in the province, said Friday that police will be conducting extra checkpoints this month as well as patrolling roadways looking for impaired or distracted drivers as well as speeding and seatbelt violations.
“We all know if we are going to go out and partake in festivities and I know even with MADD that our message is not that we don’t want people to go out and enjoy themselves and have fun, but we also want them to be responsible. We know any decision we make and action that we take can have a lifelong effect and we want to avoid tragedies.”
She said the RCMP is seeing improvements on the highways and roads because of better communication between police and motorists.
In fact, she said, the number of serious injuries and fatal collisions have decreased over the year. Chapman added that RCMP are working to make sure they are in areas having higher rates of collisions.
“Our communication message is consistent throughout the year, but during the Christmas season, we launched Operation Christmas last week and we really communicate hard during the Christmas season to get the message out there,” she said.
Yet, she said, police officers can’t be everywhere all the time, so they rely on the public for assistance in reporting impaired or distracted drivers.
She said such calls not only can keep an accident from happening, but also help RCMP identify problem areas or drivers that may need more attention to correct the situation.
