Ottawa traffic blitz yields 101 charges, including 88 for speeding

Ottawa police issued 101 provincial offence notices during a traffic enforcement blitz on major roads across the city over the weekend before Nov. 9. The West District Traffic Unit laid 88 speeding charges, police said.

Officers focused on speeding and other high-risk driving behaviours. Police said they chose enforcement locations using collision data, traffic complaints, community concerns and enforcement trends.

Other charges

Along with the speeding charges, police reported 13 other charges:

• Four for driving while using a handheld communication device.
• Two for failing to display two plates and two for not having a currently valid permit.
• One for using a plate not authorized for the vehicle and one for failing to surrender a motor vehicle permit.
• One for failing to stop at a red light, one for failing to surrender an insurance card and one for failing to stop at a stop sign or stopping in the wrong place.

Police said they continue to see serious and fatal collisions linked to excessive speed, distracted and impaired driving, aggressive driving, failure to obey traffic controls and reduced adherence to pedestrian and school crossing safety.

Police reminded motorists to follow posted speed limits, slow down in residential areas and school and community safety zones, and put mobile devices away while driving. They also urged drivers not to drive impaired and to stop completely at red lights and stop signs.

Drivers should have valid documents readily available and ensure everyone in the vehicle is properly restrained, police said. Ottawa police said they will continue intelligence-led traffic enforcement across the city.