RCMP: Distracted drivers targeted

By Boundary Sentinel

A month of enforcement to support the distracted driving laws took place over February. The West Kootenay area members of the traffic services (three RCMP and three Nelson Police officers) and the Integrated Road Safety Unit participated in the month-long focus.

Police issued 82 violations for distracted driving, 132 seat bealt, several assorted traffic violations, three drug-related and two alcohol investigations during this enforcement period.

The campaign also focused on education of driving while distracted to prevent serious collisions in relation to road safety.

Distracted driving includes: cell phone use, texting, reading, or doing activities while driving that draw your attention from the road.

RCMP statistics released in February show that in 2010 32,000 tickets had been issued for distracted driving.