Thanks to some proactive efforts from BC Highway Patrol, no one died over the Victoria Day long weekend for the first time in at least six years, and thousands of high-risk drivers have been caught.
The May-long High-Risk Driving and Motorcycle Awareness Campaigns yielded more than 9,600 speeding tickets across the province, with roughly 1,200 issued in the Kootenay region, 66 resulting in a vehicle impound.
“We had a lot of positive public feedback about the impact of BC Highway Patrol’s high-visibility enforcement, and we’re very happy to do our part to reduce deaths on our roads,” said Superintendent Mike Coyle of BC Highway Patrol. “We still find too many examples of irresponsible driving.”
Some notable stories include a drunk, speeding driver on Highway 3/95, who was stopped after doing 166 km/h in a 100 km/h zone. The speed demon received a 90-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition, an excessive speed ticket and had their car seized for a week.
The next day, on May 18, a driver blew a “warn” into a breathalyzer on Highway 21 near Creston and received a one-day suspension. Her husband came to pick her up, failed the sobriety test, and also received a one-day suspension. Both were picked up by their parents.
Superintendent Coyle is leaving with a message as the Summer Impaired Driving Campaign wheels into view: “Refocus and take safe driving more seriously. The heat of summer will bring a lot more traffic on BC Highways.”
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