Long weekends go by too fast.
For the B.C. Highway Patrol, that adage was doubly true for the Victoria Day holiday, as police opened the summer driving season by ticketing hundreds of lead-footed drivers.
Overall, police say they handed out 2,830 violation tickets that weekend across B.C., with some drivers not only being fined but also having their vehicles impounded for high-risk speeding.
The fastest, say police, was a Dodge Charger clocked at 208 km/h in a 100 km/h zone.
Below are some of the speeds that BCHP members say they registered.
- A Ferrari doing 143 km/h/ in an 80 km/h zone
- A Chrysler 300 doing 128 km/h in a 60 km/h zone
- A Volkswagen Touareg doing 136 km/h in an 80 km/h zone
- Two Teslas doing 160 and 165 km/h in a 90 km/h zone
- A Ford F150 doing 110 km/h in a 60 km/h zone;
- Two street racers doing 130 and 131 km/h in a 60 km/h zone
- A BMW doing 185 km/h in a 100 km/h zone
The fines ranged from $368 to $483, with vehicles being impounded for seven days.
“B.C. Highway Patrol members targeted the top high-risk driving behaviours contributing to serious injury and fatal collision on our highways, targeting excessive speeding, aggressive or dangerous driving, impaired driving, and distracted driving,” said police.
Also, 82 impaired drivers were removed from B.C. roads during the long weekend initiative. In two cases, drivers had their vehicles impounded for 30 days.
“Thank you to the public for reporting high-risk drivers and impaired drivers,” said Cpl. Melissa Jongema. “We would like to encourage the public to report high-risk driving to police immediately, so we can continue to work together to reduce the number of serious collisions on our highways. Drivers should expect enhanced enforcement operations throughout the summer season as we continue to focus on high-risk and impaired drivers.”