By Taylor Broderick [1]
BELLEVILLE – Over the next four weeks, Northumberland OPP [2] will be dedicating their time to stopping distracted drivers.
The OPP will be doing what they call “focused patrols [3]” to find distracted drivers – specifically those who are using their cellphones while driving.
There are a few different types of distractions that can cause harm on the roads, according to a news release from the detachment.
Distractions can be visual (taking your eyes off the road to check you phone), manual (taking your hands off the wheel) and cognitive (taking your mind off of the task of driving), police explained.
Northumberland Detachment Commander Lisa Darling said that OPP take “a combined approach of education and focused enforcement during our campaigns. Every driver must remember that he/she has a responsibility to direct their entire attention to driving safely.”
In 2014, the number of distracted driving-related deaths on OPP-patrolled roads throughout Ontario [4] was higher than the number of deaths caused by speeding, impaired driving and driving with no seatbelt, police said.
The breakdown:
- Speed-related deaths: 61
- Impaired-driving deaths: 46
- Deaths due to lack of seatbelt: 50
- Distracted-driving deaths: 73