On August 28th and 29th 2015, RCMP officers from the locally based South Okanagan Traffic Services team deployed to the Osoyoos & Oliver areas in large scale. The officers were supported by the presence of “Alexa’s Bus”, a mobile safety unit designed to assist police in their counter-attack against impaired drivers.

“Alexa’s Bus” is part of the legacy of Alexa Middelaer. Just four years old, Alexa was feeding a horse on the side of the road when she was struck and killed in May of 2008. Alexa’s death was a catalyst for change that has led to an unprecedented partnership between community, policing, and government to save hundreds of lives by reducing impaired driving in British Columbia.

“We are fortunate to have had the bus in the South Okanagan this weekend to enhance our enforcement efforts and generate awareness about the issue of impaired driving. The education component provided by Alexa’s bus is a valuable tool in the prevention of impaired driving. And for those who continue to not get the message that we won’t tolerate impaired driving in our community, Alexa’s Bus helps us to deal with them as well.”

Alexa’s Bus moved around the Osoyoos area on Friday night and Oliver on Saturday night. A total of 8 impaired drivers (7 by alcohol and 1 by drugs) were removed from the roadway during the checks.

“In one case, we had an impaired driver call a family member for a ride (as we had just impounded the driver’s vehicle for a period of 30 days). The family member attended and was also impounded & issued an alcohol related prohibition. They decided to call a taxi after that. It’s hard to believe sometimes.”

Police also arrested and charged a 39 year old male from Oliver with 2 counts of drug possession.

he RCMP would like to thank the community at large for the support they showed their police officers this weekend.

“The reception from our community was overwhelmingly positive with many curious citizens stopping to ask questions about the bus, Alexa and our operations. We had some photo ops with the kids, gave a few tours, talked about the importance of sober driving…the entire operation was a huge success.”

Some of the features of Alexa’s Bus:
•The most advanced criminal breath testing technology and a darkroom for conducting drug impaired driver evaluations.
•Three mobile computer workstations for immediate filing of reports, and two private rooms for suspected impaired drivers to contact legal counsel during investigations.
•The most advanced green technology. It is powered by a hybrid electrical system with a backup clean diesel generator and a solar‐charging system on the roof.
•A GPS‐tracking alarm system and a video surveillance and recording system.
•Energy‐efficient LED interior daylight panels and also for the red and blue emergency lighting on the exterior of the Bus.
•Exterior colors of the police emergency lighting—blue at one corner and red at the other—blend into the colour purple in the middle – Alexa’s favourite colour