York Regional Police were on the lookout for speeding cars on a stretch of road in Sharon, where the speed limit was recently reduced from 60 km/hr to 50 km/hr.
The patrol on May 19 was part of Canada Road Safety Week, which runs from May 17 to 23, encompassing the Victoria Day long weekend.
Const. Todd Snooks said the warmer weather means there is potential for more speeding events.
“As things dry up, as the weather gets better, you do see that speed can increase, for sure. I think, too, the opening up from COVID, there’s more people back out on the road,” he said.
So far in 2022, across York Region there have been 580 arrests and 727 charges, 650 tickets for distracted driving, 11,400 tickets for aggressive driving, which includes speeding, 700 of those were for stunt driving, and 200 tickets for seatbelt compliance.
“The key message is slow down, be aware of your surroundings. Reaction time is based on your speed, so let's keep everyone safe," Snooks said.
That sentiment was shared by Nelson Costa, manager of corridor control and traffic safety with York Region.
“We want residents to slow down. When you slow down you have more time to react to unexpected conditions. You’re able to come to a complete stop much sooner and it’s for the safety of all our road users,” he said.
He said regional council approved the speed limit decreases on 11 sections of roads throughout the region last month and that the changes were recently implemented.
The 11 roadway locations were identified over the previous year based on the pedestrian, cyclist, and traffic volumes. In some cases, the sections are near schools or community centres, like the one on Mount Albert Road in Sharon.
“We want to ensure that speed limits are set to be consistent across the region and we want to ensure that they are reflective of the road conditions and the land uses along the stretch of road,” Costa said.
He said the region is working with community partners like YRP and the school boards to help promote safe transportation and make the region a safe place to live.
Speed limits were decreased on the following 11 sections of road:
- Yonge Street from Olive Street/Beckett Avenue to Queensville Sideroad – 60 km/hr to 50 km/hr
- Doane Road from 2nd Concession Road to Leslie Street – 70 km/hr to 60 km/hr
- Mount Albert Road from Leslie Street to 100 metres east of Colonel Wayling Boulevard – 60 km/hr to 50 km/hr
- Leslie Street/The Queensway South from 244 metres south of Ravenshoe Road to 80 metres south of Joe Dale Drive – 70 km/hr to 60 km/hr
- Leslie Street from 840 metres south of Holborn Road to 244 metres south of Ravenshoe Road – 80 km/hr to 70 km/hr
- Park Road from Highway 48 to 800 metres south of Highway 48 – 80 km/hr to 70 km/hr
- Highway 7 from Highway 50 to Vaughan Valley Boulevard – 80 km/hr to 60 km/hr
- Highway 27 from Highway 7 to 500 metres south of Nashville Road – 70 km/hr to 60 km/hr
- Highway 27 from 300 metres north of Hedgerow Lane to King-Vaughan Road – 80 km/hr to 70 km/hr
- Weston Road from Teston Road to King-Vaughan Road – 80 km/hr to 70 km/hr
- Jane Street from 671 metres north of Teston Road to King-Vaughan Road – 80 km/hr to 70 km/hr
