Police brace for holiday crackdown on impaired driving

Calgary police are ramping up for the Christmas checkstop season and will be heading out to enforce Alberta's tough new drunk driving laws throughout December.

This year, police are asking the public to help stop impaired drivers.

"We just want to have anyone who sees someone they believe to be an impaired driver to call 911 and notify us so we can track them down," said Const. Kevin Spear with the traffic division.

"There are a lot of people in the city, and we are not everywhere, so if other people see it we would like them to tell us."

So far this year, Calgary police say 11 people have been killed in alcohol-related crashes.

This weekend also marks the start of National Safe Driving Week as the Canada Safety Council looks to raise awareness that driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs is dangerous and becoming increasingly prevalent.

“Unfortunately, people are more afraid of being caught than being killed,” said Jack Smith, president of the Canada Safety Council, in a release. “They don’t think it’s going to happen to them until it happens.”

But the organization says impairment goes far beyond alcohol and the classic, “Don’t drink and drive.”

"Increasingly, motorists are gambling with their safety and the safety of others by knowingly driving under the influence of drugs," says the group. "These drugs include illegal substances, prescription medications and over-the-counter remedies."