THE sea of flashing police lights on Highway 1 and on highways around the province this weekend really did “Light Up the Province” as it took more than 220 impaired drivers off the road in BC, says the BC Highway Patrol.

The massive effort was led by the BC Highway Patrol and involved hundreds of police officers checking more than 43,000 vehicles on highways from Prince George to Revelstoke to Campbell River to Nelson.

“We know it feels like an inconvenience when you are waiting in line at a checkstop, but it’s effective and we are catching a lot of impaired drivers,” said Superintendent Mike Coyle, the Acting Officer in Charge of the BC Highway Patrol. “Plenty of people still think they can get away with driving while impaired by alcohol and other drugs. It’s an unacceptable attitude and the reason why “Light Up the Province” is necessary.”

The numbers are still being tabulated, but here are some minimums so far:

* 43,713 vehicles checked
* At least 222 Immediate Roadside Prohibitions (an impaired driver has their licence suspended immediately)
* At least 279 violation tickets (for non-impaired driving)
* More than 400 police officers working over 122 checkstops

“Light Up the Province” is the BC Highway Patrol’s contribution to National Impaired Driving Day, which marks the traditional launch weekend for the December Winter Impaired Driving Campaign.