Red Nose service ready to ride

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This article was published 17/11/2023 (1042 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Operation Red Nose issued an urgent call for volunteers over the upcoming holiday season while launching the designated driver service in 10 communities Friday.

The number of Manitobans signing up to help get revellers home safely has dipped in recent years, said Steve Lang, president of the Manta Swim Club, which is the host and beneficiary of Winnipeg’s program.

“Getting volunteers out is so hard these days,” Lang said at a news conference. “It would be really bad to lose this great initiative. Somehow, we need to find a way to make this great service continue.”

Red Nose programs have closed in some Canadian cities because of a lack of volunteers, he noted.

Last year, organizers in Winnipeg hoped for 50 driving teams for New Year’s Eve, which is the service’s busiest night, Lang said.

Instead, they only had 17 teams and struggled to keep up with demand.

Lang said some people don’t have the time to volunteer, while the COVID-19 pandemic, which paused the program, has also been a factor.

Now in its 27th year in Manitoba, Operation Red Nose is a free service in Winnipeg and nine other communities from this Friday to the early hours of New Year’s Day.

The service, which operates between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m., encourages Manitobans to plan a safe ride home in a bid to prevent impaired driving-related crashes, injuries and fatalities.

“They are entirely preventable,” Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said.

Manitoba RCMP Sgt. Cathy Farrell said 23 people have died because of impaired driving in 2023, compared with 18 in 2022.

Red Nose filled 1,453 volunteer positions and gave almost 1,900 rides homes in 2022 while collecting about $45,000 in donations for youth sports and community programs, including Manta Swim Club.

After placing a call to the Red Nose hotline at 204-947-NOSE (6673), the caller or group is driven home in their vehicle by two volunteers. A third volunteer follows in an escort vehicle.

The program is also available in Brandon, Flin Flon, Gimli, La Broquerie, Portage la Prairie, St. Malo, Shilo, Steinbach, The Pas and Thompson this year.

The service is co-ordinated by Safety Services Manitoba, with Manitoba Public Insurance and Manitoba Liquor and Lotteries among its partners.

Lang said the swim club uses donations to buy new equipment, fund scholarships and subsidize swimmers’ travel costs to competitions in Canada and abroad.

The Winnipeg Police Service will launch its annual holiday season checkstop program in December, Insp. Doug Roxburgh said.