Improving Road Safety In Ontario
Highway 17 Northern Ontario. Photo OntarioNewsNorth.com 2013
Ontario is introducing legislation today to help reduce collisions, injuries and fatalities on the province’s roads and highways and keep them among the safest in North America.
If passed, the proposed Keeping Ontario’s Roads Safe Act and supporting amendments to the Highway Traffic Act will make highways and roads safer by:
- Increasing fines for distracted driving from a range of $60 – $500 to a range of $300 – $1,000 and assigning three demerit points upon conviction
- Increasing fines for drivers for dooring cyclists from a range of $60 – $500 to range of $300 – $1,000 and raising the demerit points from two to three
- Requiring all drivers to maintain a distance of one metre when passing cyclists
- Requiring drivers to yield the whole roadway to pedestrians at school crossings and pedestrian crossovers
Ensuring Ontario’s roads and highways are safe is part of the government’s economic plan that is creating jobs for today and tomorrow. The comprehensive plan and its six priorities focus on Ontario’s greatest strengths – its people and strategic partnerships.
Ontario’s roads consistently rank among the safest in North America thanks to our tough laws and strong enforcement, along with the work of our many dedicated road safety partners. Our new legislation, if passed, would keep drivers, cyclists and pedestrians even safer as we get tougher with those who ignore the law.” Glen R. Murray, Minister of Transportation, Minister of Infrastructure
Despite Ontario’s road safety record, there is still more to do – by targeting impaired, distracted and other unsafe driving with increased fines or penalties, we hope to reduce the tragic and costly consequences of collisions, injuries and fatalities on our roads.” Dr. Arlene King, Ontario Chief Medical Officer of Health
Quick Facts
- Drinking and driving fatalies represented close to one quarter of all fatalities annually.
- According to current collision trends, fatalities from distracted driving are forecasted to exceed those from drinking and driving by 2016.
- Pedestrians represent about one in six motor vehicle-related fatalities on Ontario roads – 41 per cent of which occurred at intersections.
- The proposed legislation would build on existing measures Ontario has introduced to improve road safety, including making booster seats mandatory, ensuring every person wears a seatbelt, introducing stiffer penalties for street racing, bringing in tougher impaired driving laws, and banning hand-held devices while driving.
