CALGARY- Police say they don’t plan on following the lead of cities like Edmonton and Vancouver, by going undercover to catch distracted drivers.
Both cities have disguised officers as homeless people and put them at problem intersections, as a stealth way to hand out tickets. But the Calgary Police Service says they don’t need to put on an act to catch offenders.
“I can sit in my marked police vehicle clearly displaying that it’s a police vehicle, with a police officer inside of it at an intersection, and I can look to my left or right and I will see people operating their phones or their GPS,” says Sgt. Mike ter Kuile.
Despite police using a more conventional enforcement strategy, the number of violations appears to be increasing—up 30 per cent so far this year compared to last year.
Just under 2,000 tickets were issued in the first three months of 2012, compared to over 2,600 during the same period this year.
Those hit with a distracted driving ticket face a fine of $172.
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