Operation Impact – Fall Seatbelt Campaign Results

(PERTH COUNTY, ON) Perth County OPP officers played a major part in this years Canada wide “Operation Impact”. With dedicated patrols along Perth County Roads this Thanksgiving weekend, we are thankful to report no that no major injury or fatality collisions occurred within the County.

As part of this campaign, officers maintained a ‘zero tolerance’, targeted enforcement approach towards drivers who were placing others at risk by their poor driving behaviours. Officers conducted 11 R.I.D.E. (Reduce Impaired Drivers Everywhere) programs throughout the county and extensively patrolled Perth County roads looking for aggressive and distracted drivers as well as those who improperly of fail to use seatbelts.

One of the R.I.D.E. programs east of Mitchell on Thanksgiving Monday, resulted in one male driver being administered a roadside breath test. He registered a blood alcohol concentration from .05 to .08, resulting in the loss of his driver’s licence for 3 days. Other violations were also investigated at R.I.D.E. programs, such as the arrest of a disqualified driver, the confiscation of a radar detector and issuing of five liquor licence tickets.

During the campaign a total of 148 drivers who felt the “need to speed”, received tickets for doing so. Six motorists who could not resist using their electronic devices while driving were charged with distracted driving. Numerous other citations were issued to drivers for offences which placed their lives and those of other citizens at risk.

The two week “Fall Seatbelt Campaign” also concluded this past weekend and unfortunately officers still ended up charging 53 motorists with seatbelt violations. After 36 years of seatbelt laws in Ontario, it is disappointing that seatbelt use to these drivers is not an automatic response.

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