Distracted driving still a concern in Maritimes
Karim Kpaka has been a driving instructor in Moncton, N.B., since opening King of the Road Driving Academy eight years ago.
He spends most of his time out on the roads and what he sees the most when it comes to distracted driving might not be the first thing one would expect.
“The biggest thing that I’ve found on the road with my students, which I always point it out to them, is our friends and family member that love their animals, they put it right in the driver’s seat and they have one hand on the wheel, one with the dog, petting the dog, while they are driving,” he said.
He says 90 per cent of his students are newcomers to Canada and he makes sure to put a big focus on being defensive and safe drivers both during their instruction in the classroom and behind the wheel.
“We’re not just here to pass the road test, it’s to be a safe driver on the road,” said Kpaka. “You need to be aware of your surroundings and when we see things like that on the road, I usually point it out to them and I also ask my students to look around and see what the other drivers are doing: they’re on their phones, the dog is there.”
In 2021, CAA conducted a poll that showed 47 per cent of Canadians admit they have typed out or used the voice-memo feature to send a message while driving.
That same poll determined Canadians’ number one road safety concern was distracted driving and nowadays a lot of things fall under that category.
“Our cars right now are driving computers,” said CAA Atlantic spokesperson Julia Kent. “It’s not just the cellphone that’s causing these distractions behind the wheel. It can be everything from the in-vehicle technologies like GPS and music or it can be something like eating, applying lipstick, dealing with the child in the backseat or a pet.”
When it comes to penalties, CAA National points out the Maritimes don’t seem to be as strict as other provinces considering there are no licence suspension risks in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick or Prince Edward Island.
Distracted driving fines on the Island range from $500 to $1,200 and five demerit points.
In New Brunswick, drivers are looking at a $280 fine and five demerit points and in Nova Scotia the monetary fine increases for each ticket, starting at $233.95 for the first ticket, paired with four demerit points.
“I think like anything it has to be an all or nothing situation,” said Kent. “It takes a millisecond for a collision to occur, so anything that takes your focus and your eyes off of the road and off of your surroundings when you’re behind the wheel is considered a distraction.”
She noted when it comes to changing any type of driving behaviour, there needs to be a three pronged approach: having the laws in place, enforcing the laws and making the behaviour socially unacceptable.
“CAA would definitely push for more stricter penalties for distracted driving because that just keeps our roads safer,” she said. “If people know that the penalty is high, it is less likely that they’re going to engage in the behaviour that is dangerous.”
CAA also states drivers who are distracted are at a higher risk of collision.
More specifically, distracted drivers are eight-times more likely to be in a crash or near crash event compared to non-distracted drivers.
According to a report done by hellosafe, 12 people died in New Brunswick in 2021 as a result of distracted drivers and 13 people died in Nova Scotia the same year.
A spokesperson said statistics were not available for Prince Edward Island.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Hackers release corporate data stolen from London Drugs
Retailer London Drugs says cybercriminals who stole files from its corporate head office last month have released some of the data after it refused to pay a ransom.
Toronto man falls off his chair after seeing $70M Lotto Max win in his bank account
A Toronto man who won $70 million in a recent Lotto Max draw literally fell off his chair when he saw the funds in his bank account.
Montreal-area high school students protest 'sexist' dress code
Approximately 50 Montreal-area students — the vast majority of them female — were suspended Wednesday after their school deemed the shorts they were wearing were too short. On Thursday, several students staged a walk-out to protest what they believe is a "sexist" dress code that unfairly targets girls.
'Looking over our shoulders': A killing looms large in a little B.C. town
Something shifted in the pretty little village of Lumby, B.C., after Tatjana Stefanski vanished. It used to be the sort of place where parents let their kids roam free or play in the local creek, but everything has changed.
What is 'slapped cheek disease' and should parents be concerned?
Despite its rough name, experts say most cases of 'slapped cheek disease' are mild and not a cause for concern.
Unknown Newfoundland soldier from the First World War heads back home from France after 100 years
Canadian soldiers and government officials arrived in northeastern France this week for a historic mission: returning an unknown Newfoundland soldier back home.
American Airlines retreats after blaming a 9-year-old for not seeing a hidden camera in a lavatory
American Airlines has distanced itself from a court filing in which the carrier said a nine-year-old girl should have noticed there was a camera taped to the seat of an airplane lavatory.
'I won't stop,' Celine Dion says in trailer for upcoming doc about her health woes
Celine Dion's fans are getting a first glimpse of the superstar's struggle with a rare neurological disorder in an emotional trailer for an upcoming documentary about her career and life.
Rapper Sean Kingston's home raided by SWAT; mother arrested on fraud and theft charges
A SWAT team raided rapper Sean Kingston's rented South Florida mansion on Thursday and arrested his mother on fraud and theft charges that an attorney says stem partly from the installation of a massive TV at the home.