The Burnaby RCMP are reminding drivers to fully clear any snow from their vehicle before hitting the road, or risk a potentially stiff fine.
That’s after Mounties pulled more than 150 vehicles over during a three-hour road safety check Thursday morning, following an overnight snowstorm in the region.
In some cases, police say just a tiny portion of the vehicles’ windows had been cleared off, while others had inches of snow on top — capable of sliding onto the drivers’ own windshield and blinding them when they brake hard.
Police ended up lending snow brushes to a number of drivers, who didn’t have their own.
Mounties said a number of the drivers acknowledged they knew what they were doing was wrong, but were in a hurry to get where they were going.
Being in a rush is not an excuse to drive an unsafe vehicle,
Burnaby RCMP Cpl. Mike Kalanj said.
Getting to your destination late is better than not getting there at all. Not clearing your vehicle is a hazard to yourself and to others on the road.
Police let 125 of the drivers go with a verbal warning, on the condition that they clean the snow off their cars before proceeding, though 16 people were issued written warnings.
Six drivers’ poor snow removal was serious enough to warrant a ticket for driving with an obstructed view — a $95 hit to the pocketbook — while three were ticketed for having their licence plate obscured by snow, which carries a $200 fine.
One driver was ticketed for excessive speeding, after being caught driving 101 km/h on icy roads in a 50 km/h zone.