Distracted Driving Penalties To Increase Substantially February 1st
Starting February 1st if you are issued a Distracted Driving ticket it will cost you a lot more from your wallet and for repeat offenders a seven day vehicle seizure.
The reasons for increasing the penalties is to hopefully reduce distracted driving which, although dropping for two months in 2019 when it was a monthly Traffic Safety focus, also saw three record months of tickets issued
“.We hope by introducing tougher penalties – and especially strong penalties for repeat offenders – it will mean fewer people driving distracted and fewer tickets issued,” Joe Hargave, Minister Responsible for SGI said in a statement.
In 2018, driver distraction or inattention was a factor in more than 6,000 collisions, resulting in 774 injuries and 22 deaths.
Distracted driving is one of the ‘Big Four' factors responsible for collisions leading to deaths and injuries. The other three are impaired driving, speeding and seat belt use.
Although what constitutes distracted driving is not changing on February 1st the financial and other penalties are increasing.
The new penalties will be:
• First offence – ticket more than doubles to $580, plus four demerits.
• Second offence within a year of being convicted of the first - $1,400 ticket, plus an additional four demerits, plus an immediate, seven-day vehicle seizure. Vehicle owners are responsible for the towing and impound fees (cost varies according to mileage, but expect to pay approximately $400 at least).
• Third offence within a year of conviction of the first - $2,100 ticket, plus four more demerits and another seven-day vehicle seizure.
Hand-held devices are prohibited for learner, novice and experienced drivers, although experienced drivers can use hands-free functions on mounted devices through voice commands or one-touch. The vast majority of distracted driving tickets that are issued by law enforcement are related to cell phone use.
Watch the video below to see the effects of driving using a cellphone versus driving drunk.
In addition, drivers can receive a ticket if an officer witnesses behaviour that they can prove take a driver’s attention away from the road to the point they are operating their vehicle in an unsafe manner - see video examples below.
To help clear up some of the misunderstandings of the changes MJ Independent asked Tyler McMurchy, manager of media relations for SGI a series of questions we have been hearing from our readers.
As already previously stated what constitutes distracted driving in Saskatchewan is not changing although other jurisdictions may define it differently.
Asked about whether it will now be illegal to eat an ice cream cone or drink a coffee McMurchy responded “the law hasn't changed, only the cost of the ticket. You can still drink coffee or eat a snack, as long as you are able to maintain your focus on the road and keep a hand on the wheel.”
Asked if the penalties were not harsh enough and people should lose their licenses for distracted driving just like impaired driving McMurchy said one was a criminal code offense the other a vehicle offense but penalties could potentially include a license suspension.
“Distracted driving is an offence under the Traffic Safety Act. It is not a Criminal Code offence like impaired driving. Having said that, repeat traffic offences can trigger additional sanctions under the Driver Improvement Program, which include licence suspensions.”
Regarding some complaints the new penalties are nothing more than a cash grab McMurchy said that is not the case but meant to reduce distracted driving overall and hopefully the number of colllisions causing death and injury.
“They are significant, absolutely. But drivers don't have to pay a ticket if they don't drive distracted. As you noted in your previous question and as we note in the news release, there are serious, potentially deadly consequences when people drive distracted. As the Minister noted when the fines were first announced, the number of tickets police were issuing had been rising, and it was clear the previous fine was not enough of a deterrent. We hope the new fines will be, and people stop driving distracted, because it will make our roads much safer.”
A few readers asked why doesn’t the province simply legislate it so cell phones in motion will not work for at least texting to whoch McMurchy pointed out it was unfeasible and meant non-drivers also could not use their mobile devices.
“A system like the one you propose may or may not be technologically feasible, but it would be difficult to see how that could work for the thousands of people who aren't SaskTel mobile customers or who hail from out of province . Furthermore, it would also prevent people who are passengers, or riding in buses, taxis, etc. from using their mobile devices.
The best solution is to convince drivers that their focus needs to be on the road. Also, phones are not the only distracting factor, as our recent campaign illustrates.”
Check out some examples in the videos below:
Although the fines for some might seem harsh and a money grab McMurchy pointed out the province and SGI only want to see a reduction in distracted driving incidents. Since announcing the new stiffer penalties McMurchy points to two months of lower rates of people ticketed as a positive sign drivers are are paying attention.
“We sure hope people get the message and stop driving distracted. It's very easy to avoid a ticket.”
To help avoid being ticketed check out the do's and don'ts here: https://www.sgi.sk.ca/news?title=want-to-avoid-a-distracted-driving-ticket--we-ll-tell-you-how