6 impaired drivers, including taxi driver, caught in 3.5 hours: Delta police

A Delta police cruiser is seen in this image from the Delta Police Department.

Police in Delta, B.C., say they took six allegedly impaired drivers off the road in the span of three-and-a-half hours Friday night.

Two of the offending drivers, including a taxi driver, were involved in crashes before they were tested for impairment, according to the Delta Police Department.

In the taxi driver’s case, the DPD says the cab crashed into a parked car while off-duty, around 9:42 p.m. The driver gave a breath sample at nearly four times the legal limit, according to police. The taxi was impounded and the driver was handed a 90-day prohibition and faces criminal impaired driving charges.

Police say they were called to a second collision at 11:20 p.m. after a car struck a median. That driver refused to provide a breath sample, and therefore received a 90-day driving prohibition and had their vehicle impounded for 30 days, the department said.

Another driver stopped that night, at 1:07 a.m., also allegedly refused to provide a sample after “an officer detected the odour of liquor” and received the same consequences.

One driver stopped after leaving a local pub at 11:23 p.m. failed a breath test and was handed the same 90-day driving ban and 30-day vehicle impound.

The remaining two drivers—one who was stopped after leaving a pub at 9:41 p.m. and the other leaving a liquor store at 10:58 p.m.—gave breath samples in the “warn” range and received three-day driving prohibitions.

“The removal of these six impaired drivers, including two drivers who were involved in collisions, in such a short timeframe is a stark reminder of the risks that impaired driving poses to everyone on the road,” the department wrote in a news release Tuesday.

“Remember, impaired driving endangers lives. We urge all drivers to make responsible choices. Have a plan in place to get home before you start drinking — don't drive impaired. Your safety and the safety of others depend on it.”