VANCOUVER, British Columbia, May 09, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Alexa’s Team welcomes more members today as RCMP and Municipal police officers are recognized for their dedication and efforts to take impaired drivers off the roads.
Alexa’s Team pays tribute to the dedicated RCMP and Municipal police officers who make an extraordinary contribution to reducing the number of drivers affected by alcohol or drugs on British Columbia’s roads and highways. The provincial recognition program is named in honour of four-year-old Alexa Middelaer, who was killed by an impaired driver in Delta, British Columbia in 2008.
This year, 266 officers are being named to Alexa’s Team, including 122 from the Lower Mainland, which was the location for a special recognition ceremony today.
In the past 11 years, Alexa’s Team has grown from 26 members, to 2,667 new and returning RCMP and Municipal police officers from all corners of the province. Overall, more than 94,721 drivers affected by alcohol or drugs have been removed from British Columbia streets, roads and highways since 2008, thanks to the incredible commitment and diligence of the officers named to Alexa’s Team.
“Impaired driving is a completely preventable crime, and yet people continue to be killed and injured by it every day,” said MADD Canada Chief Executive Officer Andrew Murie. “By taking impaired drivers off the roads, the outstanding officers who are part of Alexa’s Team are helping to prevent these tragic deaths and injuries, and are making roads and communities safer for everyone.”
Alexa’s legacy is a powerful and poignant driving force in the anti-impaired driving movement. In addition to the program recognizing police officers, Alexa’s Bus was established as the province’s mobile road safety unit. It has been employed more than 300 times in communities around the province since its launch in 2014 as an education and enforcement tool.
The programs named in honour of Alexa build on other community programs, including the RID 911 program, supported by communities, police services, MADD Canada and other road safety organizations, which encourages the public to call 911 to report suspected impaired drivers.