New rules hike penalties for traffic culprits in Ontario

…Distracted drivers to pay $490 (N73,500) minimum, $1,000 (N150,000) maximum

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CANADA: ONTARIO has rolled out series of new fines and punishments for drivers caught engaging in distracted driving.

Effective September 1, 2015, anyone caught in distracted driving – which involves any act that takes away drivers concentration, or to be specific eyes away, from the road – would pay a fine of $490 (N73,500).

Besides, the offender could get a maximum of $1,000 (N150,000) fine and also punished with three demerit points, the Ministry of Transportation said.

Hitherto, the fine was $280 (N30,000), but government reviewed this upward apparently to show its distastefulness to impaired driving in Ontario Province, which has claimed many lives and caused series of accidents.

“Since 2009, more than 500 people have died in collisions in OPP-controlled roads, in which driver inattention was a causal factor,” Ontario Provincial Police Sergeant Dave Rektor said.

He added: “Statistically speaking, distracted driving has exceeded impaired driving as a causal factor in fatal collisions.”

But the fine in Ontario is still below that of Prince Edward Island (PEI), which has the highest level of punishment for drivers in Canada.

In PEI, the least fine is $500 (N75,00) while the maximum is $1,200 (N180,000) with additional five demerit points.

Among other new fines are $365 (N54,750) for motorists who, due to their negligence, caused a cyclists to hit them or get injured.

In the new rules, offending motorists would also get three demerit points, compared to previous fines of  miniumum $60 (N9,000) to maximum $500 (N75,000).

Also, motorist who passes a cyclist without leaving at least one metre would pay $110 (N16,500), and two demerit points, and the fine would rise to $180 (N27,000) should the driver fail to leave adequate space while moving in a community safety zone.

And any cyclist who failed to put on proper lights and reflectors while on the road would get a fine of $110 (N16,500), and the punishment could go up more.

Similarly, the stop on the side of the road rule by drivers for emergency vehicles have now been expanded to include tow trucks, any any driver of the truck that failed to give way to emergency vehicles would henceforth pay $490 (N73,500) as penalty.

While shedding more lights on the new rules, Rektor explained that distracted driving goes beyong texting or checking of phones while on the wheel, but any actions that would make drivers not to focus on the road.

According to him, distracted driving include pushing buttons on stereo or playing with kids or “reaching for something — anything that distracts you from driving.”