Canada Road Safety Week May 18th to May 22nd

BY ADRIAN ADORE

Today marks the beginning of Canada Road Safety Week, a seven-day national campaign aimed at making Canada’s roads the safest in the world. This annual awareness campaign is designed to increase public compliance with safe driving measures in order to save lives and reduce injuries on Canada’s roads. The focus of this campaign continues to be on behaviours that put drivers, passengers, pedestrians and other vulnerable road users at risk: impaired driving, distracted driving, aggressive driving, and not wearing a seatbelt.

Canadians have a number of reasons they use to justify adopting unsafe driving behaviours and this year’s campaign challenges them to truly assess the risks of the decisions they make. Is it really worth speeding to get to your destination only a few minutes earlier? Is it really worth driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs because some of the alternatives may be more inconvenient for you? Is it really worth driving when you are nodding off at the wheel? Is the momentary thrill of road racing really worth taking the deadly risks associated with dangerous and careless driving?

Unsafe driving behaviour behind the wheel involves the potential risk of fines, suspensions, impounds, injuries, or even death. You could lose your money, points, your license, your vehicle, your physical or mental capacities, your wages or your life. Worse yet … you could be taking all these away from others you share the road with. Whatever the reason, there is no excuse that justifies unsafe driving behaviour. It is simply #NotWorthTheRisk.

We want Canadians to remember that the decisions they make, and the consequences of their actions, do not just affect them. They affect their family and community too.

Peel Regional Police is proud to be participating in this year’s Canada Road Safety Campaign.

“Peel Regional Police has redeployed sixteen officers to frontline road safety and created the Safer Roads Teams that is focused on high-risk behaviour and repeat offenders. We are collaborating with the Peel Addiction and Assessment Referral Center to ensure that every driver who is charged with impaired driving is referred to them.” Says Deputy Chief Marc Andrews, “Road safety is a shared responsibility. As a community, we must come together to eliminate unsafe and aggressive driving. Whether you are a driver, a pedestrian or a cyclist, it’s up to each and every one of us to be responsible and acknowledge when it’s just not worth the risk. Thank you and drive safely.”

While this public safety initiative is part of a national effort to help advance Canada’s Road Safety Strategy 2025 to make Canada’s roads the safest in the world, we are confident that our local efforts will help make the roads here in the Region of Peel among the safest in Canada.