RCMP impound 12 for excessive speeding in Coquitlam
Traffic cops impounded nearly every vehicle that was stopped, including four that were in the same spot more than two hours apart.
New Year’s Eve (December 31) is tomorrow, which means the return of in-person gatherings and celebrations.
Coquitlam RCMP is advising those who choose to raise a glass to 2023 to plan a safe journey home and for everyone to obey the speed limit following recent eyebrow-raising nights of traffic enforcement.
Mounties impounded a total of 12 vehicles over the past two nights, including seven on Wednesday (December 28) and five on Thursday (December 29) – and each motorist was caught going at least 50mph over the mark.
The Lougheed Highway (7) seemed to be the proverbial racetrack for local drivers as 11 were caught somewhere along the route including one with more than double the advertised limit.
Four of these were in the exact same spot within a little over two hours.
“Don’t drive under the influence,” said Coquitlam RCMP spokesman Cpl. Alexa Hodgins.
“There are many alternatives, such as: appoint a specific driver, stay the night, use a ride-sharing program, or hail a cab.”
In all cases, the maximum penalty for excessive speeding is $483 under Section 148(1) of the MVA, and the minimum seizure period is seven days.
Vehicle confiscations may be extended where a background check of the operator deems it necessary.
“Posted speed limits are maximum speeds in ideal conditions (dry roads, clear visibility),” Coquitlam told RCMP in a social media post.
“Road safety is a priority, we are always on the lookout for overspeeding, distracted and impaired drivers.”
The fastest motorist was driving 153 km/h near the intersection of Orchid Drive and Lougheed – 83 km/h over the advertised 70 mark.
That was early Thursday morning at 1:08 a.m. and came 30 minutes before another lead foot driver traveling at 130 km/h was stopped in the same area.
Those were the last of the four Orchid Drive runabouts. The first two were seized at 23:19 and 23:40 respectively and each reached 119 km/h.
According to ICBC, 314 accidents — fatal and non-fatal — were recorded near Orchid Drive and Lougheed Highway between 2017 and 2021.
The other three were as follows:
- 7:27 p.m., December 28
- 125 km/h in zone 60 near United Boulevard and Shuswap Avenue
- 2:09 am, December 29
- 130 km/h in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Chilko Drive
- 3:44 am, December 29
- 135 km/h in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Colony Farm Road
Meanwhile, five other motorists have been fined for excessive speeding of more than 40km/h between Thursday night and this morning (December 30).
The violations are as follows, three of which involved seven-day seizures:
- 8:10 p.m., December 29
- 83 miles in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Orchid Drive
- vehicle confiscated
- 9 p.m., December 29
- 80 miles in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Orchid Drive
- vehicle confiscated
- 11pm Dec 29
- 71 miles in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Chilko Drive
- 1:25 p.m., December 30
- 70 miles in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Orchid Drive
- 2:12 p.m., December 30
- 100 miles in Zone 70 near Lougheed and Como Lake Avenue
- vehicle confiscated.
Police in the area are asking residents to call 9-1-1 if they witness speeding or dangerous driving.
Those with concerns about speeding in their neighborhood should contact the Tri-Cities Speed Watch team at [email protected]
