NEWS RELEASE
TIMMINS POLICE SERVICE
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Today marks the beginning of Canada Road Safety Week, a seven-day national campaign aimed at making Canada's roads the safest in the world. This annual awareness campaign is designed to increase public compliance with safe driving measures in order to save lives and reduce injuries on Canada’s roads.
The focus of this campaign continues to be on behaviours that put drivers, passengers, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users at risk. Despite the fact that most drivers claim to be aware of the laws and regulations related to impaired driving, distracted driving and aggressive driving, many do not appear to fully understand the various behaviours that define each of these infractions and, if they do, some continue to break the rules.
This is why this year’s campaign theme is about “Shifting Gears." We are encouraging Canadians to “think differently” about problematic driving behaviours by broadening their understanding of the rules. We are also inviting them to acknowledge the bad habits they may not have realized they had and to “change their driving behaviours” accordingly.
While traffic on Canada’s roads may be reduced due to restrictions related to the COVID-19 pandemic, the need for Canada Road Safety Week remains relevant. Anecdotally, some police services have seen an increase in the number of impaired driving, speeding and road racing incidents in their communities. This is not a trend we want to see across the country.
"Traffic safety remains a top priority for the Timmins Police Service. In light of a noted recent increase in Impaired Operation charges being laid against drivers in Timmins in early 2020 as compared with years previous, this public safety issue is uppermost in our minds and how we deploy our officers. Each year in Canada nearly 2000 people die and 165,000 people are injured in roadway incidents.
A significant proportion of these collisions are due to aggressive, inattentive or impaired driving behaviours. These numbers cannot be ignored. Timmins Police Service officers will continue to diligently monitor area roadways for drivers who indulge in these dangerous practices; the motoring public is called upon equally and responsibly to make driving safety a personal priority” says Traffic Sergeant Thomas Chypyha.
The Timmins Police Service is proud to be participating in this year’s Canada Road Safety Campaign. While this public safety initiative is part of a national effort to help advance Canada’s Road Safety Strategy 2025 to make Canada’s roads the safest in the world, we are confident that our local efforts will help make the roads here in Timmins and surrounding area among the safest in Canada.
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