Q: A bunch of us were in the bar the other night, with a designated driver. We started debating whether you could be charged with drinking and driving if you were drunk but on a bicycle. Can you?
A: I’m glad to hear about the designated driver. This is actually a pretty interesting question. I had no idea of the answer, so it made me hit the law books. There’s no definitive, all-encompassing answer throughout Canada, but here’s what I’ve come up with.
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Drinking and driving offences are primarily controlled federally. The Criminal Code of Canada prohibits the operation of certain vehicles when the operator has consumed drugs or alcohol to such an extent as their judgment is impaired. The question, then, is whether a bicycle is a vehicle for the purposes of the criminal drinking and driving laws.
The answer is also found in the criminal code. The drinking and driving laws pertain to the following vehicles: motor vehicles, water vessels (which include water skis, surfboards and sleds), aircraft and railway equipment. In the code, “motor vehicle” means any type of vehicle that is propelled by something other than muscular power.
There have been many cases where charges have resulted from operating a boat in an inappropriate way. For some reason, many people appear to believe that if the vehicle is recreational in nature, the normal restrictions on conduct and safety do not apply. Nothing could be further from the truth. Police have cracked down on operators of boats, jet skis and all-terrain vehicles in recent years. Lakes and waterways have become much safer as a result.
The “motor” in the motor vehicle definition is key. In 2004, an Ontario man was charged and convicted while operating his motorized wheelchair while drunk. Recently in Australia, a 64-year-old man was charged with drunk driving when he fell asleep in his motorized wheelchair on a four lane freeway. Other drivers had to swerve to miss him. He blew .30 on a breath test machine.
So if you are impaired by drugs or alcohol and try to ride your bicycle home, you are not on a motor vehicle and do not run afoul of the criminal code’s prohibitions on impaired driving.
However, the inquiry does not end there. Each province regulates highways and vehicles. Each province’s laws define what a vehicle is. Most western provinces include a bicycle as a vehicle, and provide that it must obey the rules of the road. So even on your bike, you must yield when required and stop for red lights.
If you were intoxicated and on your bicycle and as a result there was a noticeable departure from normal bike riding standards, you could be charged under provincial law.
Driving without due care and attention, causing a hazard on the road and possibly dangerous driving are all possible charges that could accrue.
There are significant fines for all of these offences in most provinces, and it is difficult to understand why someone would risk such a fine when a cab ride (or even a phone call home for a lift) is so much cheaper and risk-free.
Rick Danyliuk is a practising lawyer in Saskatoon with McDougall Gauley LLP. He also has experience in teaching and writing about legal issues. His columns are intended as general advice only. Individuals are encouraged to seek other opinions and/or personal counsel when dealing with legal matters.
