(BlackburnNews.com file photo)(BlackburnNews.com file photo)
London

OPP lay nearly 12,000 traffic charges during road safety week

Thousands of drivers in Ontario were given tickets during a week in which police stressed the importance of road safety.

In a news release issued Friday, the Ontario Provincial Police said close to 12,000 traffic-related charges were laid during Canada Road Safety Week. The campaign, which ran in the week leading up to and including the Victoria Day holiday weekend, saw the OPP work with municipal police forces across the province in an effort to keep our roads safe.

Among the charges laid by the OPP:

Speeding: 10,095

Stunt driving/street racing: 226

Failure to wear seat belt: 525

Failure to yield: 277

Distracted driving: 251

Careless driving: 165

Alcohol/drug-impaired driving: 162

The OPP also investigated three fatalities during Road Safety Week. On May 17, a 28-year-old woman died when she was hit by a vehicle on Hwy. 401 in Tecumseh. On the same day, a 58-year-old man was killed in an off-road crash in Peterborough County. On May 19, OPP officers recovered the body of a 72-year-old kayaker near Nipigon after his kayak became submerged and he failed to resurface a day earlier.

"The OPP is reminding boaters that Safe Boating Awareness Week is underway from May 18-24," police said in Friday's news release. "Boaters and paddlers are reminded that safe boating practices will go a long way towards keeping vessel operators and their passengers safe this season."

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