Westworld Alberta

W I N T E R 2 0 1 5 | W E S T W O R L D A L B E R T A 45 Federal Criminal Code fine $1,000 Legal fees $5,000 365% increase in annual auto insurance rate $5,235* Ignition interlock, includes monthly monitoring fee installation, installation fee, application fee and removal fee $1,460 Loss of income as a result of mandatory one-day attendance of Planning Ahead $300 Personal transportation costs due to immediate license suspense – i.e., taxi fare, bus fare, personal driver $300 Planning Ahead, mandatory alcohol education course for first-time offenders $250 Reinstatement of licence $208 Three-day vehicle seizure, includes tow hook-up fee, towing kilometre charge and storage fee $197 TOTAL COST $13,950 *Calculation based on 30-year-old male driver of a new four-door Jeep Wrangler with clean driving record convicted of a first-time offence. Costs will vary. PAY THE PRICE The next time you're umming and ahhing about shelling out money for a taxi ride home, consider the additional costs of driving with a blood alcohol level above 0.08. All of a sudden, a measly $30 for a cab home seems like a cheap ride, doesn't it? ideas and make a plan to change their behaviour, which can be as simple as committing to leaving their vehicle at home, and take public transit or a taxi instead. For some, actually making those changes to their behaviour may be easier said than done. Your third offence above 0.05, and second time if you have a BAC over 0.08, lands you in IMPACT, an intensive drug-use assessment and pre-treatment course at a secluded location. It's an opportunity for partici- pants to step outside their daily routines to take a good, long look in the mirror and make some life- style decisions. At this stage, participants may have a serious problem with alcohol and drugs and coun- selling is needed. Over the course of three days, participants start to understand the impact of their actions and how they create the situations they find themselves in. Through small group sessions with experienced addictions counsellors, social workers or psycholo- gists, IMPACT really gets to an individual's relation- ship with alcohol or drugs. In the 20 years Mick Jones has worked in addic- tions, he's counselled people from all walks of life – young, old, blue-collar workers and white-collar professionals. "ere is no such thing as a stereotypi- cal drinker. ey're social drinkers who can't manage to keep drinking and driving separate," he says. One thing that's certain is how little people know about the physiological effects of alcohol and drugs. "Alcohol affects the part of the brain responsible for reasoning," he says. Different intolerance levels, metabolism and even gender (one in five impaired drivers are women) all muddy the waters and lead to misunderstandings about how much alcohol is too much. "ere's no safe amount of alcohol or drugs (over-the-counter, prescription or illegal) you can ingest and be 100 per cent sure you're not affected." Lack of sleep, fatigue and stress impair judgment and ability to drive responsibly as well. "You're trying to change years of behaviour and knowledge handed down from generation to genera- tion," says Jones. "We have to change the way people think – publicly and en masse." Perhaps one day with enough public education, the ripples will stop and the water remain calm. W "WE HAVE TO CHANGE THE WAY PEOPLE THINK – PUBLICLY AND EN MASSE."

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