People in the Falkland area can expect to see more traffic enforcement starting next month.

The Southeast District RCMP will be relocating its regional traffic services headquarters from Vernon to Falkland as of Dec. 12.

Vernon-North Okanagan RCMP Const. Jocelyn Noseworthy says that decision will mean moving one sergeant and four constables to Falkland.

“So they’ll join the corporal and three constables that are already out in Falkland, at the detachment itself.”

Noseworthy says the move raises the potential for more people being held accountable for their speed on that stretch of Highway 97.

The speed limit drops from 90 kilometres per hour to 50 km/h through Falkland and 70 km/h in Westwold, and locals in both communities regularly raise concerns about drivers travelling over the speed limits.

“Their district is all over the southeast of B.C… So their responsibility is traffic services as opposed to detachment investigations, but you’ll certainly see more police officers coming and going out of the Falkland detachment itself,” Noseworthy says.

“It’s just a matter of finding a space for bodies to be able to do paperwork and things like that. It’s an excellent home base for them because it gives them the opportunity to access quite a few highways quite easily, which is part of their mandate.”

She says traffic services will be based in Falkland for “the foreseeable future.”