The holiday season is in full swing, and last weekend volunteers at Operation Red Nose recorded the city’s busiest night ever – the service provided 32 rides in one night.
The annual national campaign aims to end drinking and driving and encourage people to plan for a safe ride home. Volunteers arrange rides and dispatch volunteer driving teams. This year, the Burnaby, New Westminster and Tri-Cities campaign kicked off at the end of November.
This past weekend was the third weekend of this year’s campaign and quite a successful one, according to organizers.
A total of 59 rides were provided in Burnaby on Dec. 13 and 14. This is up from 36 rides provided on the third weekend of last year’s campaign, according to a media release from the organization.
Saturday night was also Burnaby’s night to volunteer. Thirty-three volunteers from Burnaby including RCMP Chief Supt. Dave Critchley and Supt. Stephan Drolet, joined city councilLor Pietro Calendino to provide safe rides to the public on Saturday as well.
Saturday night was a special one for the Operation Red Nose team as they paid tribute to deceased ICBC road safety manager Gord Couling, said Chris Wilson, coordinator of the campaign in Burnaby, in a media release.
According to Wilson, Couling was an integral part of the team that brought the Operation Red Nose campaign to Burnaby and New Westminster last year and was a “fixture at many community events.”
“Gord’s commitment to Burnaby and making our roads safe for all was the driving force behind getting Operation Red Nose going last year. He was a true champion for the community, and it was a very special night on Saturday when we could pay tribute to him,” Wilson said.
There are still three nights left in the campaign including Dec. 20 and 21, and New Year’s Eve, Dec. 31. Anyone needing a safe ride home on either of those nights is asked to call 778-866-6673 or 1-877-604-NOSE between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. For more information on the campaign or to volunteer for the remaining nights, visit operationnezrouge.com/en/region/Burnaby.
