York Police Launch Crackdown On Distracted Drivers
Posted November 7, 2006 12:00 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
With winter weather fast approaching, driving conditions will inevitably deteriorate, but York Regional Police want to make sure distracted drivers don’t exasperate an already dangerous situation.
With that in mind, York police have launched Operation ‘Stay Focused’, aimed at targeting drivers who aren’t 100% focused on the road. That means anyone talking on a cell phone, eating a snack, or engaging in any distracting behaviour could be subject to fines of up $1,000.
P.C. Peter Cepelak was pulling over multi-tasking drivers on Tuesday.
“You’re smoking with one hand, you’re on the phone with the other hand. You couldn’t possibly have control of your vehicle,” he berated one offender.
You’ll also start seeing ads on Citytv that show distracted drivers swerving or making last-minute decisions, which can lead to crashes.
“I’ve seen one gentleman who lost his sub sandwich on the floor while he’s driving, trying to reach down between the seats to get his sandwich, and of course he crashed right into the other vehicle right in front of him,” relays Staff Sgt. Chris Bullen. “And I’ve seen it. I witnessed it.”
Over the past five years in York Region alone six people have died and 4,500 collisions are blamed on distracted drivers.
