Highways, trails, waterways to be patrolled
Oct 10, 2008 - 11:41 AM
DURHAM -- Police have launched an aggressive campaign to keep the area's roadways safe as the busy Thanksgiving weekend begins.
Ontario Provincial Police officers in Durham and Northumberland will join their colleagues across the province in the effort, targeting speeders, aggressive drivers, and impaired motorists.
The initiative began Friday morning and will continue through Monday night. OPP officers will be patrolling roads in cruisers and from above in aircraft, and also plan to set up RIDE (Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere) checks throughout the weekend.
Officers will also be patrolling trails and waterways during the weekend.
The Thanksgiving weekend is traditionally among the busiest on Ontario's roads, according to the OPP. Commissioner Julian Fantino said in a statement the weekend enforcement effort is a continuation of a year-long safety initiative that has seen a 30 per cent reduction in fatalities on the province's roads.
As of early October 240 people had died in collisions, compared to 362 over the same period last year, the commissioner said, noting that speeding, drinking and driving and failure to wear seatbelts were leading factors in those fatalities.
"The tragedy of losing a loved one in a traffic collision has touched many of us," Commissioner Fantino said in a statement.
"The involvement not only of the police but also the driving public is essential in making our roads the safest they can be."
Recommend :
Latest News
An accident every two minutes on OPP-patrolled roadsDURHAM -- The timely return of wintry driving conditions had Ontario Provincial Police receiving, on average, an accident report every two minutes on the roads it patrols in ...
Key witness on hot seat at biker trialWHITBY -- The cross-examination of a key witness in the trial of two high-ranking bikers began Thursday with a full-out assault on the police agent's credibility. Defence ...
Nuclear waste building opening at PickeringDURHAM -- While a federal agency continues to work on finding a site to permanently store nuclear waste, Ontario Power Generation is moving forward with a storage solution at ...
Moving day for mental health bedsAJAX -- The mental health beds are officially on their way out of Ajax and into their now home in Scarborough. In March, the Rouge Valley Health System announced changes ...
Whitby woman one of four murdered in ScarboroughWHITBY -- Neighbours of James and Elizabeth Tompkins were, for the most part, reluctant to speak about the couple this morning. Mr. Tompkins was released by Toronto Police on ...
Killings were murder-suicide The deaths of four
people in a Scarborough home are now being treated as a murder-suicide,
police sources confirmed this morning...
Couple terrorized in home invasionOSHAWA -- Police are searching for three thugs who burst into a central Oshawa home and terrorized a couple in what's being described as a home invasion-style robbery. A ...
Clear garbage bags a goDURHAM -- Despite opposition from the mayor of Pickering, the Region is moving forward with a clear garbage bag pilot project in Pickering and Courtice. A route of about 750 ...
Nuclear regulator holding meetings in DurhamDURHAM -- The performance of the two Durham Region nuclear stations will be discussed next week when the Canadian Nuclear Safety Commission holds two information sessions. The...
Whitby man released in slayingsA man taken into custody yesterday after four bodies were discovered
at his in-laws' Scarborough home was released without charges early
this morning.James Tompkins was ...