Mom in car as ‘L’ driver caught going 130km/h in Abbotsford on Mother’s Day
Posted May 9, 2016 8:25 am.
Last Updated May 9, 2016 8:43 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
ABBOTSFORD (NEWS 1130) – A young driver with a learner’s permit has been busted going 30km/h over the speed limit on Highway 1 on Mother’s Day — with their mom in the car.
“People might remember about three weeks ago, we had an ‘L’ driver with both parents in the car doing about 55km/h over the speed limit. I thought that was a one-off; I hadn’t seen anything like that before,” says Abbotsford Police Constable Ian MacDonald.
The latest incident happened yesterday on Highway 1.
“We had another ‘L’ driver, in this case doing 130km/h in a 100km/h with their mother in the passenger seat. Not a Mother’s Day gift that we wanted to deliver but regrettably, after about $500 in fines and an impoundment, we had to take that driver and their mother off the road,” says MacDonald.
“[In a] query that our officer did at roadside… [they] actually learned that the ‘L’ driver had previously received another speeding ticket with the mother in the passenger seat, just days earlier. So, clearly, the message isn’t getting through,” he adds.
“I don’t think that this ‘L’ driver will be on the roads, at least in the short term,” says MacDonald, who says some parents don’t understand their responsibilities.
“When young people are in that formative stage of learning their driving behaviours that they might carry with them for the rest of their driving histories, we want to pay attention and we absolutely, as mentors and parents, want to make sure that they’re focusing on the rules of road safety.”
He adds young drivers’ attitudes are also changing.
“When I was learning to drive, I would always do 5 or 10km/h under the posted limit; you were just that apprehensive about doing anything wrong. Clearly, that isn’t the case in the last two incidents that we’ve shared. It’s quite alarming when you’re talking about 55 or 30 km/h above the posted limit. For a new driver without a lot of driving experience putting themselves and others at risk is just a head-shaker.”
The Superintendent of Motor Vehicles will be notified about this latest incident.
