Kelowna worst in Canada for drunk driving rates

[cutter7]

http://www.theprovince.com/news/Kelowna ... story.html

[joer2012]

Yay, for party town.

More great examples of life fails, more losers.

[GenuinelyInterested]

Some selected quotes from the link provided.

But Kelowna wasn’t the only B.C. city to crack the Top 10.

In Kelowna, drunk driving numbers tend to spike in the summer months with an influx of tourists who come for the sunshine, water and wine tours.

The Abbotsford-Mission region ranked fourth, with its drunk-driving rate in 2011 more than doubled since 2001,

However, the rates of impaired driving causing death and causing bodily harm per 100,000 population were the lowest in 25 years.

Young adults aged 20 to 24 recorded the highest impaired driving rates in 2011, based on the number of licensed drivers. Rates then declined steadily with age.

Read more: http://www.theprovince.com/Welcome+wine ... z2HcOGr5jE

[underscore]

Great, tourists are giving us a bad rap again.

[dcipher]

Great, tourists are giving us a bad rap again.

No. That's a tired old line. We have a spike of drunk tourists during big events like the Center of Gravity, but for the most part, the tourists aren't the ones out partying downtown and driving HOME drunk. All you need to do is go downtown after the nightclub flush, or hang out in late night store near the bars, and you will see plenty of openly impaired Kelowna drivers leaving downtown. It's simple and comforting to soothe ourselves with the tourist generalization, but the reality is, the MAJORITY of drunk drivers in KELOWNA are from KELOWNA.

[GoStumpy]

Instead of worst in canada for drunk driving rates, why not best in canada for caught drunk drivers?

You only know they're driving drunk if they're caught

[cutter7]

Instead of worst in canada for drunk driving rates, why not best in canada for caught drunk drivers?

You only know they're driving drunk if they're caught

That thought did cross my mind, we do have a large police force maybe the charges reflect the effort put into taking drunks off the road

[underscore]

No. That's a tired old line. We have a spike of drunk tourists during big events like the Center of Gravity, but for the most part, the tourists aren't the ones out partying downtown and driving HOME drunk. All you need to do is go downtown after the nightclub flush, or hang out in late night store near the bars, and you will see plenty of openly impaired Kelowna drivers leaving downtown. It's simple and comforting to soothe ourselves with the tourist generalization, but the reality is, the MAJORITY of drunk drivers in KELOWNA are from KELOWNA.

Allow me to correct myself then, people with vacation homes who only show up for the sunshine months.

[SurplusElect]

Good thing we don't take preventive measures like offering free bus service on New Years, extended normal bus service hours and letting there be more taxi cab companies in Kelowna.

Yet we just approved how many new police jobs for Kelowna...?

We have the money to punish you for bad choices, but not to help you make good ones.

[phasyluck]

Oh I know many of you will just disagree with my comment I'm going to make, but whatever it true! Taxi cabs in Kelowna are easily the highest rates of any city I've been in and actually had this discussion with several cabbies in the last year or so. Cheaper rates will easily entice people to make better decisions regarding this issue. I'm willing to bet on it!! Only problem is cab companies don't give two *bleep* about this issue because they have enough people paying the inflated rates to make it okay and the norm in Kelowna.

[underscore]

^ I lived in Thunder Bay for a year and they made Kelowna taxi's seem nearly free by comparison. Calgary was pretty expensive the last time I was there too.

Good thing we don't take preventive measures like offering free bus service on New Years, extended normal bus service hours and letting there be more taxi cab companies in Kelowna.

Yet we just approved how many new police jobs for Kelowna...?

We have the money to punish you for bad choices, but not to help you make good ones.

I'd be curious to see where most of these DUI stops have occurred, as taxi's and buses may have little to no impact. As far as New Years, they said the spike is in the summer, not the winter, so it appears that the year-rounders (ie locals) aren't doing too bad.

[johnhenry]

Great, tourists are giving us a bad rap again.

Not only the tourists, but the guys that work in Alberta and party here are just as much to blame.

[SurplusElect]

^ I lived in Thunder Bay for a year and they made Kelowna taxi's seem nearly free by comparison. Calgary was pretty expensive the last time I was there too.

I lived there too. The bus system is superior (no pun;)) - and they don't have as many DD's

Question - how easy is it to get a cab (wait times) or ride the bus home on Friday night in Kelowna?

The answer may reflect our terrible distinction.

[GenuinelyInterested]

Good thing we don't take preventive measures like offering free bus service on New Years, extended normal bus service hours and letting there be more taxi cab companies in Kelowna.

Yet we just approved how many new police jobs for Kelowna...?

We have the money to punish you for bad choices, but not to help you make good ones.

Do you have any statistics to back up your assumptions? Just how many local residents made a "bad" choice on New Year's Eve? How does that reflect upon the number of DUIs during the tourist season? How would providing free bus rides on NYs have any affect upon the entire year's stats?

[cv23]

Instead of worst in canada for drunk driving rates, why not best in canada for caught drunk drivers?
You only know they're driving drunk if they're caught

Agreed, maybe our cops are just doing a better job lately?