Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere or RIDE is a sobriety testing program used by police in
Ontario
Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central C ...
,
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
. The program began in 1977 as Reduce Impaired Driving in Etobicoke and the success of the program led to the expansion across the province of Ontario. (
Etobicoke
Etobicoke (, ) is an administrative district of, and one of six municipalities amalgamated into, the city of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Comprising the city's west-end, Etobicoke was first settled by Europeans in the 1790s, and the municipalit ...
is a suburb within the metropolitan city of Toronto, Ontario).
The roadside spot-checks usually appear during the holidays to catch drunk drivers, but the program lasts year round. Volunteers are also enlisted to participate in the program. Officers from participating police forces are usually members of traffic and auxiliary units.
Police roadside spot-checks are set up on major roadways and off-ramps of highways. All drivers are stopped and interrogated upon reaching the checkpoint. If a driver is suspected to be intoxicated, the officer may request a roadside
breathalyzer
A breathalyzer or breathalyser (a portmanteau of ''breath'' and ''analyzer/analyser'') is a device for estimating blood alcohol content (BAC), or to detect viruses or diseases from a breath sample.
The name is a genericized trademark of the Br ...
test. Drivers are also provided a pamphlet detailing the program.
Spot checks usually consist of several cruisers and pylons to direct cars into the area. Trailers are used to conduct breathalyzer testing. Tow trucks may be on standby to remove any vehicles with drivers caught drunk.
In 1985, the program was challenged as a violation of the
Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms
The ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' (french: Charte canadienne des droits et libertés), often simply referred to as the ''Charter'' in Canada, is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada, forming the first part ...
. The
Supreme Court of Canada ruled that the random roadside checks do not violate the ''Charter'' as long as they are carried out for the purposes of the R.I.D.E. program only. Police officers may not use R.I.D.E. stops as the basis for any other investigation.
See also
*
Mothers Against Drunk Driving
Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD) is a non-profit organization in the United States, Canada and Brazil that seeks to stop drunk driving, support those affected by drunk driving, prevent underage drinking, and strive for stricter impaired drivi ...
*
Sobriety checkpoint
A random checkpoint is a military and police tactic. In a military context, checkpoints involve the setup of a hasty roadblock by mobile truck- or armored vehicle-mounted infantry to disrupt unauthorized or unwanted movement or military activit ...
(Sobriety checkpoint in PA) - used in jurisdictions outside of
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
References
External links
*
1977 establishments in Ontario
Driving under the influence
Law enforcement in Canada
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