OPP targets distracted drivers this week

Ontario Provincial Police will be cracking down on inattentive drivers with a distracted driving campaign that began Monday and runs until the end of the week. For a fifth consecutive year, distracted driving remains the deadliest cause of road fatalities, with 83 deaths on OPP patrolled roads in 2017. That number surpasses speed-related, seatbelt-related, and alcoholand drug-related deaths for the year. Since Ontario distracted driving laws took effect in 2009, there have been 692 fatalities involving distracted drivers, said the OPP. “By now, the majority of drivers and passengers have witnessed, had a close call or been involved in a collision with a driver who was texting, talking on their cellphone or engaged in some other form of distraction,” said OPP deputy commissioner Brad Blair. “Last year, the OPP responded to 8,711 crashes that were linked to driver inattention.” If convicted of distracted driving, a fully licensed driver may be fined up to $1,000 and receive three demerit points.