The Delta Police Department (DPD) has begun prioritizing road safety in its public messaging, as part of ongoing communications that promote various ways community safety can be improved.
“There are a few different buckets — or categories — that make up our overall goal,” says A/Insp. James Sandberg, Public Affairs Manager for the DPD. “One of them, of course, is enforcement, and another is education. Over the last few weeks, we’ve heightened the focus on road safety, on our social-media channels and our news releases — awareness, and the efforts we’re taking in terms of enforcement.”
Dangerous driving — involving excessive speed, alcohol and/or drug impairment, or a combination of both — is the reason for many of the phone calls, emails and social-media comments the DPD receives from the public.
“We recognized that something we could improve upon is sharing back to the community about what our enforcement looks like,” says Sandberg. “The goal is raising awareness of the enforcement that we’re doing and, hopefully, what it will do is create a cascade effect where people realize, ‘The police are out there doing traffic enforcement,’ and will cause those drivers to raise their right foot and take some speed off.”
While enhanced community safety is the primary focus of the DPD’s messaging, Sandberg notes that drivers who are caught operating a vehicle at an excessive speed stand to suffer significant financial consequences as well.
A driver who is caught exceeding the speed limit between 40 and 59 km/h incurs a fine of $368. The fine then graduates at 60 km/h and above. Additionally, the driver’s vehicle is automatically towed and impounded for seven days, the costs of which are charged directly to the driver. ICBC subsequently designates the driver “high risk” and imposes a higher premium for the next three years.
“At the end of the day, all of those different components add up to about $1,950 in fees associated with the excessive-speed charge,” says Sandberg.
In July, there were 49 deaths in B.C. because of collisions on provincial roadways.
Sandberg adds there have already been “several more” collision-related deaths in August.
“It’s not just a municipal issue or a local issue. It’s a provincial issue, and we’re doing our part to try to lower these statistics,” he said.
