The Road Safety Monitor (RSM) is a unique, annual public opinion poll that takes the pulse of the nation on key traffic safety issues and tracks changes in opinions, attitudes and behaviours of Canadians using an online survey of a random, representative sample of Canadian drivers. RSM results are strongly correlated with fatality data and can therefore be used as an early warning/surveillance system.

Recent data from TIRF’s National Fatality Database show a 14% rise in deaths involving a drinking driver with fatalities increasing from 457 in 2021 to 521 in 2022. The 2025 RSM show self-reported behaviours also reflect a sharp uptick with 9.2% of Canadian drivers admitting to driving when they believed they were over the legal limit, which is a 56% increase over 2024.  In addition, less than three in four (71.8%) of Canadians considered drinking and driving a very or extremely serious problem in 2025, the lowest level in two decades. Post-pandemic, the landscape of impaired driving has changed as policing protocols have evolved, particularly with the adoption of new tools combined with competing priorities. In addition, capacity for public health and prevention work at a local level continues to be challenged as resources have declined or been reallocated. This may have contributed to shifts in public attitudes and a higher level of complacency when it comes to risk-taking. Drinking patterns have shifted significantly in the post-pandemic period, with notable changes in where and with whom people choose to drink. The 2025 data show a clear return to public drinking, with more drivers reporting alcohol consumption at bars and social gatherings with close friends and relatives.

TIRF, with the ongoing support of sponsors, will continue to monitor trends and perceptions about drinking and driving in Canada in order to effectively inform drunk driving countermeasures.

Please see individual RSMs for sponsors.