The Laval company Alco Prévention Canada has just conducted a study which suggests that during the Holidays of 2022, with the easing of sanitary measures, Quebecers were more likely to hit the road intoxicated than at the height of the pandemic.
She administered just over 30,000 blood alcohol tests to participants over 300 parties office in the province in the past two months. 35% of the tests were found to be above the legal limit of 80 milligrams or more of alcohol per 100 milliliters of blood, and “more than half” of those respondents were unaware of the results.
“It concerns us, launches Stéphane Morais, general manager. We arrived at data similar to 2019. People showed that they were ready to celebrate like before the pandemic. »
The company manufactures different types of electronic breathalyzers. Of course, she carried out her study to encourage consumers to get tested before driving.
“The government’s position is to say that if you drink, you don’t drive, and that remains the safest attitude,” agrees Mr. Morais. But he still believes that tests like those he markets could avoid tragedies.
“More and more countries are encouraging people to get tested. You have to stop assuming that you are fit to drive” and rely on the infallible data that the tests can produce, he says.
Red nose at the time of the balance sheets
The latest assessment of Operation Red Nose allows us to draw similar conclusions to the Alco Prevention Canada study. The organization recorded more than 26,400 rides during the 2022 campaign which has just ended, including 20,756 in Quebec.
“We had 48 regions in operation this year, whereas last year we only carried out 6,948 escorts in 20 regions. This is a partial return compared to 2019, ”explains Marilyn Vigneault, director of communications and partnerships for Opération Nez rouge.
However, this year’s data is not yet “comparable” to that of 2019, says Ms. Vigneault, since Nez Rouge had carried out more than 50,000 rides that year.
Remember that Operation Red Nose allows impaired motorists to be taken home by volunteers in their car during the holiday season.