Latest news with #MikeCoyle
Global News
4 days ago
- Automotive
- Global News
BC Highway Patrol mark this year's Victoria Day long weekend as the safest in six years
This Victoria Day weekend is being called the 'safest long weekend in years' according to the BC Highway Patrol. For the first time in six years, there were no fatal crashes on B.C. roads, however, the number of tickets for dangerous driving remained high. Safety initiatives were held across B.C. last month for the 'High Risk Driving and Motorcycle Awareness Campaign.' ICBC held a speeding campaign, and the BC Association of Chiefs of Police (BCACP) ran motorcycle safety and high-risk driving campaigns. Over the course of the month-long campaigns, BC Highway Patrol officers wrote over 9,600 speeding tickets province-wide with the majority being on the South Coast and Lower Mainland, and the Central Okanagan Region. 2:13 Traffic Tips: Keeping motorcycle drivers safe During the Victoria Day long weekend, officers wrote over 1,900 speeding tickets and impounded 79 vehicles for excessive speeding. Story continues below advertisement BC Highway Patrol enforcement shared some of the more dangerous examples in a recent press release. On May 17, a driver on Highway 3/95 in the East Kootenays was stopped for driving at 166 km/h in a 100 km/h zone. The driver was impaired and received a 90-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition, an excessive speeding ticket and had their vehicle impounded for seven days. On May 18, a driver blew a 'warn' on a breathalyzer on Highway 21 near Creston and received a three-day driving suspension. Her husband came to pick her up but also did not pass the breath test and received a 24-hour suspension. On the week of May 12, a vehicle was stopped for driving 191 km/h in a 100 km/h zone on Highway 1 near Golden. This was the driver's third excessive speeding ticket in two years. He received a five-month driving prohibition, an excessive speeding ticket, seven-day minimum impound and a notice for a licence suspension. On May 19, a motorcycle was recorded driving 152 km/h in a 90 km/h zone on Highway 1 in Burnaby. The driver holds a Class 8 (learner) license and was driving contrary to restrictions. He was fined and had his vehicle impounded for seven days. '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,' Supt. Mike Coyle of BC Highway Patrol said in the press release. 'We still find too many examples of irresponsible driving.' Story continues below advertisement In May 2024, there were three deaths over the Victoria Day long weekend, and the weekend saw an average of four deaths between 2019 to 2023. As ICBC and the BCACP prepare for the upcoming 'Summer Impaired Driving Campaign' (June 15 – August 31), Supt. Coyle had an important message to all drivers: 'Refocus and take safe driving more seriously. The heat of summer will bring a lot more traffic on B.C. Highways.'
CTV News
5 days ago
- Automotive
- CTV News
RCMP reports no road fatalities on Victoria Day weekend for the first time in 6 years
A Tesla driver was among those ticketed by BC Highway Patrol over the past month, one of over 9,600 speeding tickets issued in May. This year's Victoria Day long weekend was the safest B.C. roads have seen in years. According to a statement issued by the BC Highway Patrol, the May long weekend was the first time in six years where no vehicle-related fatalities were reported. It comes after three were reported in 2024, and an average of four fatalities annually between 2019 and 2023. '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 Supt. Mike Coyle in the statement. 'We still find too many examples of irresponsible driving.' While no deaths marred the spring weekend this year, that's not to say all drivers on the road were travelling safely. Over the course of the three days, traffic officers wrote almost 2,000 speeding tickets across the province, and 79 vehicles were impounded due to excessive speeding, the RCMP said. Throughout the whole of May, during month-long high-risk driving and motorcycle awareness campaigns, the BC Highway Patrol dished out over 9,600 speeding tickets. Over 1,500 of those nabbed were travelling on Vancouver Island, while over 2,200 were ticketed in B.C.'s central and Okanagan regions. Among those left to pay the price of their dangerous driving was one motorcyclist on a learner licence in Burnaby, who was clocked May 19 travelling 152 km/h in a 90 km/h zone, and a Tesla driver whose speed of 191 km/h in a 100 km/h zone on Highway 1 landed him his third excessive speeding ticket in two years. On May 18, two drivers were caught in the Kootenay region after a husband who was collecting his inebriated wife after she had been stopped and suspended also failed the breathalyzer. With the BC Highway Patrol's Summer Impaired Driving Campaign nearing, Coyle said he urges those getting behind the wheel to refocus, and take safe driving more seriously. 'The heat of summer will bring a lot more traffic on B.C. Highways.' he warned.
