St. Albert RCMP have found 175 people who couldn’t hang up and focus on the road in front of them since distracted driving legislation came into force a year ago.
The law hit the streets on Sept. 1 last year and covers cellphone use, both talking and texting, as well as other distractions like GPS devices, books and even grooming behind the wheel.
Cpl. Don Murray with the St. Albert RCMP said police still see a continual stream of drivers exhibiting distracted behaviour since the law took force.
“We do see it on a regular basis and we still proactively enforce it whenever possible,” he said. “There are obviously people who are going to risk it and still not change their behaviour.”
Murray said the most egregious example he has seen since the law came into force was a woman behind the wheel on Perron Street with both hands full.
“She had a coffee in one hand and a cellphone in the other, so nobody was driving the vehicle or she was using the old steer with your knee trick,” he said.
He said texting and driving, which still seems to take place, has been a big concern because drivers completely lose focus on the road in front of them.
“It is a little harder to detect, but we are picking up the odd person who is texting and driving, which is a real concern for us. That is pretty dangerous.”
As the law has come into play, people have come up with more creative ways to hide their activities, he said.
He said officers do their best to enforce the law but there are some cases where intercepting the driver would create a safety hazard.
“A lot of it is going to come to officer discretion and common sense.”
Murray said officers aren’t just looking for extreme cases in which drivers aren’t paying attention because they’re distracted.
“Anybody that is driving with a cellphone … if the officer is not tasked with another duty there is a very reasonable chance that will lead to a ticket,” he said.
