Deadly highway statistics alarm OPP

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Posted By RON GRECH, THE DAILY PRESS

Posted 1 month ago

An alarming trend has been highlighted by the carnage which saw seven people lose their lives in five separate collisions on Northeastern Ontario highways this past long weekend.

Since Jan. 1, there have been 23 fatal motor vehicle collisions in Northeastern Ontario, resulting in 33 deaths.

"Sixteen of those crashes were head-on collisions in which 23 people died," said Insp. Mark Andrews, Ontario Provincial Police unit commander for traffic and marine in the Northeastern district.

"It is really unusual that a high number of those were head-on crashes involving a vehicle crossing the centre line," said Andrews.

At this pace, total fatal collisions and resulting deaths in this region will easily surpass last year's totals.

"In 2009, we had a total of 35 fatal collisions with 40 people losing their lives on Northeastern Ontario highways," said Andrews.

Poor weather has not been a contributing factor in these fatal collisions -in fact it's been the opposite.

"The common denominator has been that the roads are dry, the sun is shining, it's a beautiful day and people become complacent," said Andrews.

"When you throw in some fog, a blinding rain storm or a blizzard, driving behavior changes dramatically. The speeds are slower, they modify their behaviour for the conditions and they focus on their driving."

In light of this trend of mostly inexplicable head-on collisions, police have growing concerns about inattentiveness and distractions taking motorists' focus off the road.

"Something is distracting those drivers," said Andrews.

He said OPP in this region have investigated numerous accidents caused while motorists were chatting on the phone, adjusting their stereo, plugging in MP3 players, fiddling with global positioning systems or other hand-held devices, texting, reading, eating or drinking.

"Vehicles have got so many gadgets in them today and there are so many things to distract you," said Andrews.

Motorists need to understand, "Your vehicle is not your living room, it's not your kitchen table, it's not a rec room. It's a mode of transportation where you need to focus on driving," he added.

Staff Sgt. Jacques Picknell, with the OPP's Hearst detachment, said another factor potentially causing some of these head-on collision is driver fatigue.

The fatal head-on collision that occurred Sunday afternoon, 23 kilometres west of Hearst, involved a 58-year-old motorist who was travelling from Alberta.

Picknell said one can't automatically assume the driver fell asleep at the wheel, though there is little else that would explain why a person travelling that distance would veer his minivan into the path of an oncoming transport truck.

"There were no brake marks or other evidence to suggest he tried to avoid the collision," said Picknell.

Const. Marc Depatie, of the OPP's South Porcupine detachment, acknowledged, "It was an awful weekend" with fatal crashes also reported in Sundridge and Parry Sound.

"We make considerable effort in public education by notifying them that there will be more vehicles on holiday weekends and that the police will respond to the influx of traffic with increased enforcement," said Depatie.

"Despite these efforts to achieve enhanced highway safety through a partnership between law enforcement and the motoring public, there are still these tragedies that occur all too often."

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