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Slow Down, Move Over (Photo credit: BC Highway Patrol)
By Pete McIntyre
safety campaign

Okanagan leads B.C. in ‘Slow Down, Move Over’ violations: police

Mar 21, 2024 | 4:00 PM

A month-long campaign to protect the safety of emergency workers led to more than 2,100 B.C. drivers getting tickets or warnings.

The BC Highway Patrol said the its officers in Kelowna had a B.C. high 390 interactions with drivers as part of the ‘Slow Down, Move Over’ campaign which calls for passing vehicles to slow down and move over (if possible) when going by all vehicles stopped alongside the road that have lights flashing.

The Fraser Coast Road Safety Unit was next with 316 interactions.

Drivers can get a ticket for $173 for failing to slow down and move over, and possible criminal charges if a worker is injured or killed.

Corporal Melissa Jongema, BC Highway Patrol media relations officer, said although the educational campaign is over, officers will be watching for motorists failing to slow down for official vehicles all year.

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“Every roadside worker deserves to go home alive to their friends and families at the end of their workday. We need to see the 230 roadside worker fatalities decrease to zero, so please save lives by continuing to slow down and move over when you see roadside workers present,” Jongema said.

Highway Patrol officers also executed a Canada-Wide immigration warrant and initiated 20 criminal investigations for various traffic, firearms and drug-related offences during ‘Slow Down, Move Over’ related traffic stops.

In the course of those investigations, BC Highway Patrol officers seized many illegal items including:

  • A rifle and scope;
  • A loaded 9 mm magazine;
  • Drugs that appeared to be fentanyl, cocaine and steroids; and
  • Illegal cannabis and cigarettes.
by Pete McIntyre
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