Ah, summer is definitely here and it looks like a stretch of warm, sunny weather is heading our way. Little wonder then, that July marks the launch of summer Counter Attack — ICBC’s partnership with the RCMP to crack down on impaired drivers. Because what feels better than coming home after a long day of work and sitting down with a nice beverage of the alcoholic kind? Whatever you prefer, nothing tastes better in July than a cold drink and many make it an alcoholic one.

It is such a casual thing to do but it’s time for people to be more responsible about it. Don’t have a drink until you know you do not need to drive again that night, because as ICBC’s new safety slogan states, “Drinking and driving starts with your first drink.”

In Cranbrook there is a yearly average of 29 car crashes involving alcohol. These result in an average of 17 injuries yearly. Each and every one of those injuries was 100 per cent preventable. On average, there are 5,100 alcohol-related collisions each year in B.C. that cause 3,180 injuries and 116 deaths.

According to ICBC, the trend in alcohol-related motor vehicle injuries is similar to the trend in fatalities: the numbers and percentages declined for many years, levelled off in the ‘90s and since 2002, appear to be rising again.

Statistics indicate males account for 81 per cent of all impaired driers in alcohol-related collisions and the 16 to 25 age group has the highest number of impaired drivers, accounting for 35 per cent of all impaired drivers in alcohol-related crashes.

So now that we have the statistics, what will we do? A change of habits is in order. Choosing not to drink and drive is one of the very easiest ways to drastically make our community safer and cut down on injuries. Whatever your past practice has been, this summer start new and if you have even just one drink, don’t drive. Walk, take a cab, stay where you are, or have a designated driver. Do this and Cranbrook will be safer for it.