The RCMP have their hands full with motor vehicle crashes in Oliver.
Failure to yield is a common cause of motor vehicle crashes in Oliver, according to South Okanagan Traffic Services (SOTS).
Statistics show there was a five per cent increase in fatal injury crashes in Oliver in 2015, compared to the five-year average.
Osoyoos had a four per cent increase, while rural Penticton had a 19 per cent reduction in fatal injury crashes.
Summerland saw a 16 per cent reduction, while Keremeos experienced a whopping 65 per cent reduction. Princton’s decreased by 10 per cent.
Overall, the fatal/injury crash rate was reduced in 2015 by 15 per cent.
“That translates to about 40 to 50 people who were not killed or injured on South Okanagan Similkameen highways in 2015,” said SOTS unit commander Sgt. Harold Hallett.
He noted that South Okanagan Traffic Services is increasingly targeting primary causal factors and high crash locations.
In Oliver, the top causal factors are speed, impaired driving and failing to yield, according to Hallett.
He said the crash sites are spread around Oliver and surrounding area, with an elevated number on Highway 97 between 71st Street and Sportsmens Bowl, usually at intersections with side roads.
Hallett said Oliver traditionally has a lot of crashes involving left turning vehicles failing to yield to oncoming vehicles, or vehicles emerging from driveways or side roads failing to yield to vehicles on the highway.
Over the five-year period of 2011 to 2015, there were 10 fatal collisions in the Oliver area, and 174 injury collisions, Hallett reported. Of those 184 collisions, seven were found to have involved distracted driving.
“Rural roads tend to be more forgiving of distracted driving than congested urban areas such as Vancouver or Kelowna,” the officer stated.
On June 1 the fine for distracted driving increased to $368 (from $167), plus $175 for four penalty points on your driving record, for a total of $543.
Repeat offenders will pay the same $368, but will receive escalating penalty points for each offence within 12 months. For example, a second offence will net you a $368 fine plus $520 in penalty points, equaling $888.
Get out your pencil for a fifth offence – $368 plus $3,760 in penalty points equals $4,128.
And heaven forbid if you get nabbed a 10th time; that’s $368 plus $14,520 in penalty points for a grand total of $14,888. Repeat offenders will also face an automatic licence review, which could result in a driving prohibition of three to 12 months, according to Hallett.
By Lyonel Doherty
