Clinton News Record, 2015-02-18, Page 2020 News Record • Wednesday, February 18, 2015
OPP to drivers: Help us prevent another chaotic winter on roads
OPP & MTO Working Together to Keep
Roads Safe; Need Drivers on Board
The more than 33,000
road collisions on Ontario
Provincial Police (OPP)
patrolled roads last winter
has the OPP asking road
users to be part of the
solution to reduce the
number of preventable
collisions over the 2014-
2015 winter.
Poor driving behaviour
- not poor weather or road
conditions - was a primary
contributing factor in
many of last winter's sin-
gle and multi -vehicle
crashes, taking an unre-
lenting toll on road users,
the movement of traffic
and the provincial social
costs associated with
motor vehicle collisions.
Between December 1,
2013 and March 31, 2014 a
total of 33,334 collisions
occurred on OPP-patrolled
roads compared to 25,953
collisions over the same
four-month period in
2012-2013. The crashes
resulted in deaths and
numerous serious injuries.
Among the injured were
OPP officers who
responded to these crash
scenes and whose cruisers
were struck by drivers who
failed to adjust their speed
to the conditions.
The OPP will be working
closely with the Ministry
of Transportation (MTO)
to ensure that roads are
kept as safe as possible
over the winter months -
but the OPP admits that
they cannot do this alone.
"No other road safety
partner can have as strong
an influence on reducing
the number of collisions
during winter as drivers
can through positive driv-
ing behaviour. During the
winter months, the way
people drive needs to be
very different than the way
they drive the rest of year.
If every driver makes this
critical change this winter,
we will not have another
chaotic winter that ends
with a staggering number
of collisions and the asso-
ciated injuries and
deaths," -- OPP Deputy
Commissioner Brad Blair,
Provincial Commander of
Traffic Safety and Opera-
tional Support.
"The safety of our roads
is always a top priority
and we continue to work
closely with our road
safety partners to promote
safe and responsible win-
ter practices. Ontario win-
ters can be challenging for
drivers. Be sure to check
road conditions on MTO's
Ontario 511 Traveller
Information Services.
Please stay alert, slow
down and drive according
to road and weather con-
ditions." -- Steven Del
Duca, Minister of
Transportation
Over the winter months,
the OPP will be providing a
steady flow of safety-
related tips, information
and reminders on its social
media sites in an effort to
keep motorists on track
with safe driving behav-
iour and to keep them
informed about winter
driving issues on our
roads. One strong and
recurring message people
can expect to hear over
winter is the need for every
driver to adjust their speed
and slow right down when
visibility and road condi-
tions deteriorate and to
avoid non-essential travel
during these periods.
Another important mes-
sage will be the need for
all drivers to use their full
set of headlights every day
throughout the winter
months. Far too many
vehicles could not be seen
by the drivers behind
them last winter because
their rear lights were not
on. Using the full set of
headlights is the only way
to completely engage your
rear lights and this is criti-
cal in helping to reduce
the risk of collisions when
driving in poor visibility.
The OPP will also be
encouraging drivers to use
MTO's Ontario 511 Travel-
ler Information Services
which provides easy
access to up-to-date win-
ter information on road
conditions and road clo-
sures on provincially
maintained roads. Ontario
511 also provides voice-
activated, hands-free ser-
vice. Drivers are expected
to observe Ontario cell
phone laws when using
Ontario 511 while on the
road and are encouraged
to pull over to a safe loca-
tion to use it as the safest
option. Planning ahead
and being prepared will
help keep road users safe
so help spread the word
about Ontario 511!
Because drivers and
passengers have many
eyes on the road, they are
in the favourable position
of exerting an even
stronger influence on
reducing the number of
collisions if they too take
part in the OPP's social
media dialogue on safe
winter driving.
The OPP is asking road
users to tell them what
driving behaviours they
believe Ontario drivers
need to change in order to
help prevent another cha-
otic winter on our roads.
Go to the OPP's Corporate
Facebook page and share
your views, observations
and be part of the solution
for a safer winter on our
roads: https://www.face-
book.com/ontarioincialpo
lice?ref=bookmarks
While the OPP, the MTO
and drivers all play differ-
ent roles in keeping winter
roads safe, the goal is the
same for all: safe drivers
and safe winter roads that
are free of collisions, inju-
ries and deaths.
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