The unit has issued 177 fines and seized more than $498,000 in contraband, including cannabis, unstamped tobacco and cash.

Since the start of the year, Alberta RCMP’s Roving Traffic Unit has issued 177 fines and seized more than $498,000 in contraband, including cannabis, unstamped cigarettes and cash.

In a news release, the RCMP reports its goal is to “enforce traffic safety while also detecting any criminal activity that might be making its way across our province via our roads and highways.”

During a five-day blitz in April, the RCMP in Jasper issued five liquor and cannabis tickets, 16 speeding tickets and arrested 11 individuals on outstanding warrants. Officers also stopped seven motorists driving with suspended licences, five without insurance and 13 without registration.

In January, another five-day blitz in the Jasper area resulted in the confiscation of almost one kilogram of cannabis, 227 grams of psilocybin, 26 tablets of OxyContin, 85 tablets of Percocet, and 1.5 cartons of black stock cigarettes.

In May, a stop in Lake Louise led to one of the unit’s most significant busts of the year. After seizing illegal tobacco from a vehicle with two occupants, police searched the rest of the vehicle and recovered two kilograms of suspected crystal methamphetamine and a kilogram of cocaine.

The stop was part of a larger enforcement initiative, running from May 8 to 13, and resulted in recovering $329,711 related to fines and contraband.

In April, Canmore was the site of another significant bust after a vehicle was stopped for multiple traffic violations. The driver was found to be in possession of drug paraphernalia and a search of the vehicle led to the seizure of one kilogram of cocaine and 200 grams of suspected fentanyl.

Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis reports that consuming cannabis in/on any motor vehicle is illegal, with the exception of those being used as a temporary residence, such as a parked recreational vehicle.

While Canadian law allows for cannabis and cannabis products to be transported by vehicle, “it must be secured in closed packaging and not within reach of the driver or occupants.”