Government should have consulted on impaired driving law
For more details
Letter to Premier
Admin penalties for drivers
Truscott: Impaired driving law
op-ed
The Alberta government needed to engage small businesses in the hospitality sector in a meaningful consultation before enacting proposed new impaired driving legislation.
The Alberta government wanted to pass a new law similar to one in B.C. that allows license suspensions and vehicle seizures for drivers whose blood-alcohol level is found to be below the legal limit of 0.08 but above 0.05. However, a growing number of small business owners in the hospitality industry are concerned the new law will not effectively help prevent and punish impaired drivers, but instead have serious and ongoing impact on the viability of their businesses.
Like other Albertans, small businesses support the enforcement of strong laws to punish drunk drivers and renewed efforts to find effective prevention strategies. But while it's not clear if the new law in B.C. had a meaningful impact on the impaired driving issue, it most definitely has significantly impacted many small businesses in the hospitality sector that are already struggling with a weakening economy, ongoing labour shortages, and government imposed minimum wage hikes.
B.C. implemented their system of administrative penalties without consultation and has caused considerable confusion for the public about whether it is permissible to even have a glass of wine when dining out. Some restaurant and pub owners in B.C., especially outside the lower mainland, have reported losses between 10 to 50 per cent.
Experts are also raising doubts about the effectiveness of administrative penalties and argue Alberta should instead adopt more effective enforcement strategies for drivers who violate the existing laws, especially repeat offenders and younger drivers who are impaired.
