Police, victims welcome demerit penalties for distracted drivers in the new year

Alberta police services are welcoming confirmation that a distracted driving conviction will now include three demerit points, on top of the current $287 fine, starting Jan. 1, 2016.

The Alberta government announced details of the regulation change Thursday, seeking to curb drivers from making deadly decisions on provincial roadways.

Driver distractions, research says, account for 20 to 30 per cent of all collisions. Distracted drivers are three times more likely to be involved in a collision than regular drivers.

"Between September 2011, when distracted driving legislation was put in place, and March 2015, there have been 87,633 distracted driving convictions," Transportation Minister Brian Mason told a news conference, adding "it's only getting worse."

He said there were more than 27,000 convictions between April 2014 and March 31, 2015, with drivers in 97 per cent of those convictions using a hand-held electronic device.

In May 2015, the province increased the fine from $172 dollars to $287. But Mason said that penalty is "clearly not enough," suggesting Albertans want stronger penalties.

One of the loudest voices making that call is 21-year-old Renaye Wade, who suffered a serious brain injury after being struck by a distracted driver in 2013.

'This is a start for Alberta'

"This is a start for Alberta," she told the news conference..

"We are stepping up from being a province with the weakest penalties. But we will have to do more."

Wade, who now educates students on the consequences of distracted driving, thanked the province for "making our roads a little safer."

But Wade said her organization RADD (Renaye Against Distracted Driving) will continue to gather signatures for harsher penalties, including more demerits and the ability to seize the licences of a repeat offenders.

Edmonton police Chief Rod Knecht described the tougher penalty as a "very positive" step that "keeps everybody safer."

The fine was not acting as a deterrent by itself, said Knecht, noting it may be different with the downturn in the economy.

"But I would say prolific offenders really want to keep their licence, that's their highest priority," Knecht added. " And I think this will deter those folks. When they start get to the nine demerit, 10 demerit mark, they'll really start paying attention -- because they don't want to lose their licence."

RCMP deputy commissioner Marianne Ryan said demerits are the key.

"Unless it impacts someone's livelihood, which it will throught the demerits and loss of a licence, it won't have the same impact," she said. "So we're very pleased, all policeunanimously, are very very pleased with the implementation of the demerits."

Mason said the possibility of giving police more authority to seize vehicles involved in extreme speeding is also under consideration.

"It's pretty clear to me that we need to find the appropriate response to that and we're working on that currently," Mason said.

The announcement followed passage of a private member's bill in the legislature last spring, which called for the addition of three demerit points.