Saskatoon police say starting in the new year, officers conducting a routine traffic stop can order a breathalyzer test without the requirement that there is suspicion the driver may be under the influence.
Police said the change, starting Jan. 1, is an “additional measure to improve road safety and reduce impaired driving within Saskatoon.”
“New year, new beginning, and new instrument and tool to use for the service and why not start it on the first day of the year,” said Sgt. Raymond Robertson with the Saskatoon Police Service.
Robertson said that when an officer pulls over a vehicle to conduct a stop, officers will then read a demand to order the driver to provide a breath sample into an approved screening device to determine if they have alcohol in their system or not.
Mandatory alcohol screening isn’t a new concept, with the authority to do so being within police powers since 2018 after changes to Canada’s Criminal Code.
Since then, several police services across the country have made changes to allow for officers to demand a breathalyzer without cause.
In Saskatchewan, Regina police made the change in March 2024, with the provincial RCMP doing the same a month later in April.
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Asked why Saskatoon police waited until 2026, Robertson said they wanted to see how it worked for other police services.
“We just wanted to make sure we see how the trends go and how it works for other countries, other services in the province, and make an educated decision to roll it out in a proper way and make sure that it works out properly for the city of Saskatoon,” said Robertson.
He added that people in the past may have said no to breathalyzers due to not understanding the reasons why they’re required to give one, or they may not understand the technology behind the tests and how reliable it is.
Data provided to Global News by Saskatoon police shows the number of Criminal Code traffic charges paid for impaired operation of a motor vehicle in 2025 — as of Nov. 30 — sits at 301.
The number is a 34-per cent increase in the number of charges laid only a year earlier, when 223 were laid.
In addition, 110 charges were laid for other Criminal Code traffic violations that included refusing a breath teat, up from 97 in 2024.
Bonny Stevenson, president of MADD Saskatoon, says it’s good news that the city’s police force is now going to implement the mandatory screening.
“The more we can do, the better,” she said. “Any life we save is hugely important, any family we can save from the loss that we’ve suffered.
She added while she recognizes some people might be unsure about having to submit to a breath test, she noted that if you’re not driving impaired it’s a “quick thing” to do.
Stevenson, who told Global News she lost her 17-year-old son in 2013 to an impaired driver, stressed things like the mandatory screening are just another reminder of why people should plan a safe ride home and not drink and drive.
“It’s so bloody simple. There’s just multiple ways to get home safe and, you know, go out, enjoy yourself, but plan that ride before you leave the house,” Stevenson said.
—with files from Global News’ Grace Miller, Christopher Vandenbreekel and Lara Howsam
© 2025 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.