Barriere Star Journal, March 26, 2012

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MONDAY, MARCH 26, 2012

Vol. 38, Issue 13

bcclassified.com

www.starjournal.net

$1.40 incl. HST

2011 CCNA

Locals learn how to apply for grants 50 attend

..... page 7

TRHD tax increase $21 per home

Green beer and Irish stew

Barriere Royal Canadian Legion ladies (l to r) Eileen Myers and Pat Brown served-up St. Patrick’s Day food and fun at the branch on Mar. 17.

Hospital budget

..... page 7

STAR/JOURNAL photo: Lisa Quiding

Last chance for public input to Barriere budget

Elderly drivers offered a road test option

Mar. 26, 7 p.m.

..... page 9

By Tom Fletcher Black Press

Helicopter skiers also monitor wildlife Mike Wiegele

..... page 11

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Drivers more than 80 years old who fail a computerized test of their mental ability will now be offered a road test before they have to surrender their licences. Attorney General Shirley Bond announced the road test option Monday after complaints from people who lost their driving privileges based on a computer test called DriveABLE. Some elderly people with little computer experience found the touch-screen tests of cognitive ability to be unfamiliar and unfair way to test them. The DriveABLE test has is administered on referral from doctors who detect cognitive impairment in patients that may affect their driving. Bond said

those who failed the on-screen test in the past six months will be offered a free road test, using a test car with dual brakes. Those who failed more than six months ago have to see their doctor before being reassessed. NDP public safety critic Kathy Corrigan was surprised to hear that the DriveABLE program is now being “peer reviewed,” a step that she said the government should have taken before the service was contracted for B.C. Corrigan said the road test option is a step in the right direction, but details of that haven’t been made public yet. Bond also announced that a new DriveABLE assessment centre will be opened in Cranbrook, making 18 locations in B.C. A new mobile service is also in the works, so people in rural areas

don’t have to travel as far to be tested. The DriveABLE test uses a terminal with a touch screen to measure mental abilities. In the first stage, the driver holds down a button until a shape appears on either the left of right side of the screen. The subject has to release the button and touch the shape as quickly as possible, to test reaction time and accuracy of movement. Another stage tests ability to notice changes at the edge of the field of vision, simulating pedestrians and traffic signs. The test subject must make a decision about a word in the centre of the screen, and also report the location of a target that appears at the same time in a different area of the screen.

Barriere liquor store break-in foiled by witness North Thompson Star/Journal During the early morning hours on March 3, 2012, a witness observed two males wearing dark clothing with a drill attempting to break into the Barriere BC Liquor Store by drilling the front door lock to gain entry. The witness observing the crime disrupted the break-in and the culprits fled on foot behind the building. Barriere RCMP and Kamloops Police Dog Services attended and tracked the males to a nearby road, where fresh tire marks were located. It is believe the males entered the vehicle and fled the area away from the scene. Cst. Napier says, “Barriere RCMP want the community to be aware of their surroundings, especially suspicious people or activity, and vehicles that do not belong. You can call 911 to report a suspicious occurrence, but please have as much detail as possible and call right away. You can help increase the odds of catching these criminals with timely and detailed information.”

SERVING THE NORTH THOMPSON VALLEY FROM HEFFLEY CREEK TO BLUE RIVER


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