Police offer tips for a safe and happy New Year’s Eve

**** HRP Media Release

Police offer tips for a safe and happy New Year’s Eve

Police are asking for your cooperation in keeping our roads safe this holiday season.​

Extra officers will be working tonight as part of the New Year’s Eve festivities. Police will also continue random checkpoints throughout our city to detect and arrest impaired drivers and ensure road safety in our community.

If you’re impaired, don’t drive. December is the season of holiday parties, which means lots of celebrating and socializing with your family, friends and co-workers. Celebrating doesn’t mean drinking or using cannabis and then driving home; plan for an alternate way home or to stay the night at a hotel. For transportation this New Year’s Eve arrange for a designated driver, take a cab or take advantage of Halifax Transit’s free bus and ferry service starting at 6 p.m. in support of MADD Halifax Region. Visit https://www.halifax.ca/transportation/halifax-transit/new-years-eve for full details.

Be a responsible party host. If you’re hosting any parties during the holiday season, take steps to help your guests get home safely. Monitor and supervise the serving of alcohol or designate a responsible adult to serve your guests. Have lots of non-alcoholic beverages available for designated drivers, and encourage people to take a taxi home or stay the night if they’ve been drinking. If a guest insists on driving after drinking, discourage them from doing so and call police if necessary.​

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Keep an eye out for impaired drivers. If you spot a suspected impaired driver, call 9-1-1 as soon as it’s safe to do so. You should provide as much information as possible about the driver and vehicle (i.e., make, model, colour, license plate number, direction of travel), as well as the location of the incident and the overall driving behavior.​

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Below are some of the tell-tale signs of an impaired driver:

• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Driving unreasonably fast, slow or at an inconsistent speed
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Drifting in and out of lanes
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Making exceptionally wide turns
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Overshooting or stopping well before stop signs or stop lights
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Disregarding traffic signals and lights
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Driving without headlights, failing to lower high beams or leaving turn signals on
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Driving with windows open in inclement weather

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Practice good winter driving habits. A little planning, preparation and patience will help you master winter driving:

• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Make sure your vehicle is prepared for winter weather with winter tires, extra windshield washer fluid, a shovel, a bag of salt or sand in case you get stuck, a snow brush and an ice scraper are all a must.
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Plan ahead by checking the weather forecast and road conditions. Allow extra time to reach your destination if the conditions are going to be bad.
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Before you hit the road, clear all snow from the roof, hood, windows, mirrors, lights, turn signals and cameras of your vehicle. Scrape/defrost your windshield if necessary.
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Don’t drive distracted; keep your hands on the wheel and your eyes on the road.
• ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Adjust your speed, leave extra space between you and the vehicle in front of you and remember not to accelerate or brake too quickly when the roads are slippery.

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Halifax Regional Police wish everyone a safe and happy new year!