B.C. government rolls back speed limits on routes with speed-related collisions | iNFOnews | Thompson-Okanagan's News Source
Subscribe

Would you like to subscribe to our newsletter?

Current Conditions Clear  2.3°C

Kelowna News

B.C. government rolls back speed limits on routes with speed-related collisions

Image Credit: Shutterstock

VICTORIA - The British Columbia government is rolling back speed limits on sections of more than a dozen highways where speed-related crashes have climbed since higher limits were approved in 2014.

Transportation Minister Claire Trevena says a three-year review of crash data from 33 routes shows the top three factors for increased collisions are driver inattention, road conditions and driving too fast for those conditions.

She says while higher speeds were permitted serious crashes jumped significantly and she singled out what she calls an "alarming" increase on several routes, including Highway 19 between Parksville and Campbell River, where speed-related accidents jumped by one-third.

Fifteen sections of highway, including the Highway 19 stretch, will see speeds cut by 10 km/h, joining stretches of Highway 1 and Highway 5A in the southern Interior, where high crash rates prompted roll backs in 2016.

Speeds on sections of 16 routes, including the Coquihalla, won't be changed because the Highways Ministry says they haven't shown higher accident rates over the last four years.

However, RCMP Insp. Tim Walton warns that police will be boosting enforcement on all corridors where collisions increased to ensure drivers are respecting the new limits.

Highways where speed limits will be cut:

— Two stretches of Highway 19 on Vancouver Island.

— Sections of Highway 1 on Vancouver Island, the Fraser Valley and into the north Okanagan.

— A portion of Highway 3 outside Princeton.

— Highway 7 from Agassiz to Hope.

— Highway 99, the Sea-to-Sky Highway, from Horseshoe Bay to Pemberton.

— Portions of highways 97A and 97C through the southern Interior.

News from © The Canadian Press, 2018
The Canadian Press

  • Popular kelowna News
View Site in: Desktop | Mobile