All drivers stopped by RCMP this month in Halifax will have to do breathalyzer test

All drivers in the Halifax Regional Municipality who are pulled over by the RCMP for traffic violations this month will be required to take a breathalyzer test to determine if they're driving under the influence of alcohol.

"We're getting into summertime," Const. Scott Aldridge of the RCMP Southeast Traffic Services said Friday.

"The underlying thing is public road safety, and impaired driving is the No. 1 cause of criminal death and injury in Canada."

Police said drivers will not be pulled over indiscriminately to conduct an alcohol screening, but will be required to submit to one if they are stopped for violations including speeding, careless driving or non-working brake lights.

The mandatory screenings will take place in Halifax-area communities served by the Mounties and the 100-series highways, including the 101, 102, 103, 107 and the 118.

The breathalyzer test takes about 90 seconds, said Aldridge.

Drivers who refuse the mandatory screening could be convicted under the Criminal Code, have their driver's licence suspended and have their vehicle impounded.

Legal to test without any reasonable suspicion 

It has been legal in Canada since 2018 for police to request a breath sample from any driver of a motor vehicle without having reasonable suspicion of impairment.

The Halifax RCMP is the latest police force in Canada to initiate mandatory alcohol screenings for routine traffic stops.

The Ontario Provincial Police said this week officers would be conducting mandatory alcohol screenings for all traffic stops in the Greater Toronto and Hamilton area and for all traffic stops made by OPP Highway Safety Division officers.

Last month, Saskatchewan RCMP said police would be conducting mandatory alcohol screenings on all routine traffic stops going forward.

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