Be careful on the roads: crashes spike over May long weekend
Posted May 17, 2019 8:03 pm.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — The long weekend is here, and summer is just around the corner.
But with the holiday comes more people on the roads and on the water, meaning more collisions — even deaths.
On average, two people are killed on B.C. roads every year on this weekend.
The B.C. Coroner’s Service released its most recent data, showing one-third of people who died in vehicle crashes weren’t wearing seatbelts, and 971 deaths — over a third of all crashes — involved drugs and or alcohol.
RELATED: Long weekend marks beginning of Safe Boating Awareness Week
ICBC’s Safety Program Manager Alex Lee says the numbers are startling.
“In 2017 in B.C., 540 people were injured in 43 crashes over the Victoria Day long-weekend,” he says.
Police are hoping to bring this number down to zero, kicking off a province-wide enforcement blitz to target speeders as part of a month-long campaign.
Lee says speeding isn’t worth the risk.
“Speeding really won’t get you there noticeably faster, but may increase your chances of crashing,” Lee says.
VPD’s Marine Unit will be on patrol as well – there’s always a spike in the number of boats on the water for May long.
Safe Boating Awareness Week begins this weekend.
– With files from Marcus Fitzgerald
