Kamloops drivers slapped with $50,000 in fines during RCMP traffic blitz
Kamloops RCMP slapped drivers with $50,000 worth of fines and issued hundreds of tickets during a three-day traffic blitz last month.
Kamloops RCMP, Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement, B.C. Highway Patrol, Kamloops bylaw (community service), B.C. Conservation Service and other agencies joined forces from Sept. 27 to 29, to identify vehicles in need of major repairs, according to an RCMP media release issued today, Oct. 13. They also dealt with other safety issues like distracted driving.
“It’s a big enforcement initiative we do provincewide seasonally that we haven’t been able to do since COVID,” Cpl. Wayne Chung with the Kamloops RCMP municipal traffic unit said in the release. “This is a big one, everyone’s involved.”
Some motorists were given information and had inspections ordered, while others were issued tickets depending on the seriousness of the violation.
“Today the biggest thing we’re finding is personal trailers and improper towing,” Cpl. Chung said. “There’s some enforcement depending on the infraction but a lot of it's education.”
Improper connections, failure to conduct a pre-inspection and brake check, and not hooking up the break-away properly are other common concerns related to trailers. Drivers are encouraged to do their research before pulling a trailer onto the road.
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One driver had a large bag of aluminum cans fall out of his vehicle onto the Halston Connector nearly causing several collisions, RCMP said. He was ticketed for having an insecure load.
One vehicle was impounded for driving between 115 and120 km/h in a 70 km/h zone.
The public started to catch on after the first day of the three-day blitz.
“Chatter on social media encouraged others to avoid the area because of enforcement,” Cpl. Halston said. “Instead of trying to hide, do your due diligence prior to getting on the roadway so it will be safer for you and the other people using it.”
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