Ontario’s new distracted driving fine of $280 is meant to reduce cellphone-related driving deaths in the province, but some question the law's efficacy.
The new law nearly doubles the previous fine of $155 and will come into effect on March 18. The OPP also announced on March 3 that distracted driving is now the leading cause of death on Ontario’s roads. Their report stated that in 2013, cellphones and other distractions caused 78 fatalities, more than both impaired driving and speeding.
“I’ve been to a few accidents where there’s been death involved, serious injuries, and you see the cellphone jammed in the dashboard,” says Ottawa police Sgt. Mark Gatien.
A driving force behind raising the fines, Gatien says he was disappointed by how little the original law seemed to have changed drivers’ habits. “I stopped somebody and he said, ‘I made more money on that call than this ticket’s worth, so whatever,’ ” says Gatien. Because of incidents like this, Gatien recommended that each $280 ticket should also come with two demerit points.
“Some people might be able to afford tickets,” he says, “but they can’t afford having points.”
City Coun. Tim Tierney, who helped Gatien push the fine increase forward, considers the new law a good first step.
However, he would have liked to see demerits included as a penalty, arguing they are “the only true way to really force people to leave their phones down.”
But that’s not what the evidence shows. In 2010, Saskatchewan implemented a $280 fine for distracted driving, with four demerit points attached, and few have noticed any positive change.
“If anything, distracted driving is getting worse,” says Kelley Brinkworth, manager of media relations at Saskatchewan Government Insurance. Since its law was implemented, Saskatchewan has also seen distracted driving become the number one cause of fatal car accidents in the province. Between 2011 and 2012, it went from causing 33 per cent of deaths to 38 per cent.
In response to this increase, the provincial government has partnered with police to raise public awareness of the dangers of distracted driving. They’ve had “spotlight” months where police pay particular attention to drivers who appear to be on their cellphones.
Despite Saskatchewan’s poor results, Tierney says that if the current law in Ontario isn’t working, he is confident that the provincial government will change it.
Ontario is one of only four provinces without any demerit attached to distracted driving charges. That doesn’t include Nunavut, which has no laws for distracted driving whatsoever. When Ontario’s law comes into effect, it will have the highest fines for first offenders along with Saskatchewan. Newfoundland and Prince Edward Island charge as much as $400, while Nova Scotia fines peak at $337.