Over 200 Okanagan drivers receive warnings during education blitz

Police and BCAA were out on Highway 97 in Kelowna, B.C., with a tow truck on Monday morning to test drivers’ knowledge of the province’s slow-down, move-over law.

The final tally in Kelowna Monday was 265 warning letters distributed.

The rules say that drivers need to adjust their speed and make space whenever vehicles are stopped with their red, blue, or amber lights flashing.

Kelowna RCMP Cpl. Michael Gauthier said after just over an hour, more than 70 warnings had been handed out.

Some drivers may not know that the rules don’t just apply to emergency vehicles but any vehicle stopped with their lights flashing. That includes other professions like utility workers, land surveyors, and garbage collectors.

Another source of confusion for drivers is just how slow you need to go.

“That probably is a bit of a misunderstanding,” admitted Cpl. Gauthier.

Gauthier explained that when the speed limit is 80 km/hr or above vehicles need to slow to 70 km/hr, and when the speed limit is below 80 km/hr drivers need to slow to 40 km/hr when approaching a service vehicle.

Luckily for drivers, Monday’s event was just about education.

“This is just an opportunity to give a warning only as opposed to a ticket. Because it does come with three penalty points which is pretty severe.”

BCAA, a major provider of towing services in B.C., hopes the education blitz hits home because its drivers are still reporting a lot of dangerous situations on the roads.

“Everyone is saying the same thing — that unfortunately people are not slowing down, they are not moving over, they don’t feel safe working on the side of the highway so that’s why we are here today,” Weloy said.

Along with the risk of causing serious injury or death, drivers who don’t slow down and move over could also face a $173 ticket.

The final tally Monday was 265 warning letters.