More than 1,500 charges were laid across Eastern Ontario during one the busiest travel weekends of the year, says OPP.
In a roundup on long-weekend traffic enforcement efforts, OPP said preliminary results show officers in East Region laid 1,576 charges.
The goal of enforcement during the Labour Day long-weekend was ultimately to improve safety on local roadways, waterways, and trails, said police.
Speedsters once again topped the list, with 893 charges laid.
“Speeding is one of the top contributing factors in fatal collisions and is 100 per cent preventable,” reiterated acting-superintendent Stephan Neufeld, following the official long-weekend rundown.
Just ahead of the long-weekend, OPP reported that as of mid-August, 214 people had already died on OPP-patrolled roads, with speeding, alcohol and drugs, driver inattention and lack of seatbelt use accounting for a significant number of the fatalities.
Meanwhile, there were 92 seatbelt violations, along with 42 stunt driving and 26 impaired driving charges laid over the weekend.
There were also additional offences – 83 people were charged with failing to have proper insurance. Another five people were charged with distracted driving, while 13 people were charged with driving with alcohol and cannabis readily available, reported OPP.
Marine officers also had a busy long-weekend, with a total of 19 charges laid under the Canada Shipping Act for offences related to lack of life jackets and/or other safety equipment, reported OPP.
OPP has a simple message: Slow down, buckle up and don’t drive impaired, stressed Neufeld, who also echoed concerns around the number of people driving without insurance. Those policies are in place to ultimately help people in the event of a serious collision, explained Neufeld.
Highway and road safety is a shared responsibility year-round, and OPP continues to ask citizens to report dangerous and impaired driving by calling 911.
(Written by: Sarah Hyatt)
