Earlier this month, you may have seen a lot of police cars around as the Moose Jaw Police Service played host to the provincial Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP). 

The two-day program saw police agencies from across Saskatchewan including the RCMP, Saskatchewan Highway Patrol, CN and CP Police, Estevan Police Service, Weyburn Police Service, Regina Police Service and Saskatoon Police Service came to Moose Jaw to help with traffic enforcement.  

The focus was on speeding, distracted driving, seatbelts use, unlicensed drivers, commercial vehicle standards and impaired driving. 

While the number of tickets and offences handed out is still being worked out because there were so many other agencies involved, Chief Rick Bourassa still felt it was very successful. 

“There are always good opportunities to have high visibility and to remind people about the rules of the road and the safety pieces,” Bourassa said. 

STEP was also an educational opportunity for some of our local police officers. They were able to interact with officers from different communities, ask questions, and bounce ideas off of each other. 

“They make really good connections that way. It makes it a lot easier for them when they have a question about something they can reach out to somebody else. Yeah, it always brings value,” Bourassa said. 

STEP is a partnership between SGI, Saskatchewan Justice and Saskatchewan’s policing community by working together to reduce traffic deaths and injuries. Officers will travel out to different communities throughout the year to help with traffic enforcement.