The head of Kamloops' RCMP is afraid a drunk driver will one day mow down bar patrons milling in the downtown streets after closing time.

"The downtown becomes a very wild and crazy and dangerous place" after the bars close, Insp. Yves Lacasse told the City's co-ordinated enforcement task force Friday.

While some people grab cabs or find other ways to get home, some simply hang out on the street waiting for a fight or looking for companionship.

"They leave the bar, they're all intoxicated, and then they're our responsibility," he said, adding he'll have three, four or five officers watching over people loitering after the bars shut down.

"It's just a matter of time before a drunk driver plays bowling with them."

Gay Pooler, manager of the Kamloops Central Business Improvement Association, said transportation is part of the problem. There aren't enough cabs to take all the people coming out of the bars when they close.

She suggested a taxi stand be set up or the City extend bus service to the early hours.

Jon Wilson, City community safety and enforcement manager, said there have been discussions about the problem with the cab companies. They don't have enough vehicles to accommodate all the patrons at once, but they do like the idea of a taxi stand.

But Mayor Peter Milobar, who has worked in the bar industry, said he didn't think transportation is the issue.

In his view, it's people who want to hang out past closing who are the problem. They're looking for entertainment, whether it's a fight or something else.

"There's only one busy club on any given night of the week. Everyone seems to en masse go to one bar."

Lacasse said if anyone had ideas about how to solve the problem, they should contact him.