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Saturday, August 3, 2013

Police Increasing Presence On Roads During Long Weekend

Stay sober, buckle up and don't answer that call. Long weekends mean more traffic on the roadways, and police are heightening their presence to crack down on dangerous driving. 

Sergeant Claude Tremblay of RCMP's Traffic Services tells CHSJ News some people say they don't need to wear a seat belt because they're not driving very far, but Tremblay says statistics show that 80% of people drive within 25 to 30 kilometres of where they live, so that argument doesn't hold water. 

He says if you're not wearing a seat belt in a crash, you'll be knocked around or ejected from the car, and if you're ejected, 95% of the time you'll be seriously injured or killed.

The percentage of fatal crashes where the victims weren't wearing a seat belt has gone up, from 23 per cent last year to 40 per cent so far this year.