Red Deer RCMP issued tickets to more than 20 drivers not following the rules of the road in a one-day distracted driving operation last week.
On July 13, officers set up at two locations downtown and issued 22 tickets and three criminal code charges. Violation tickets were issued for distracted driving, along with one ticket issued for driving the wrong way down a one-way street.
“Distracted driving can have very serious consequences, especially on Red Deer’s busiest roads,” says Cpl. Dwayne Hanusich of Red Deer RCMP. “Motorists need to understand that distracted driving will not be tolerated.”
The penalty for distracted driving is a $300 fine and three demerit points.
According to statistics from the CAA, distracted driving is one of the largest causes of collisions, injuries and death on Canada’s roads, contributing to 21 per cent of fatal collisions every year.
Distracted driving includes using hand-held cell phones, entering information into a GPS unit, reading, personal grooming, and other activities that take a motorist’s attention off the road.