www.insideHALTON.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, February 20, 2015 | 6 Drive by the rules to prevent traffic deaths Last week, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) released statistics related to the hundreds of fatal motor vehicle crashes it has investigated province-wide over the last decade (2005-14). While the report depicts a steady decline in the number of annual road deaths -- from a high of 451 in 2007 to a low of 286 in 2011 -- what hasn't changed is the fact an overwhelming number of road deaths result from poor driving behaviour or driver error, therefore making them preventable. The OPP identi es the most common causal factors in road deaths as the Big Four. Those include: alcohol/drug-related; inattentiveness; speed-related and no seat belt/helmet. The impact these four factors are having on our roads is frightening. In 2014, the OPP investigated 265 fatal road accidents in which 287 people died. Of these fatalities, 73 deaths (25 per cent) were related to inattentiveness; 61 deaths (21 per cent) were related to speed; 50 deaths (17 per cent) involved no seat belt/helmet; 46 deaths (16 per cent) were related to alcohol/drugs. In some cases, more than one of the Big Four causal factors may be at work in a single traf c fatality. "As we have said before, regardless of how hard the OPP works to reduce the number of lives lost in road collisions, we cannot do this alone," said Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair, provincial commander of traf c safety and operational support. "Ontarians need to understand what we learn from this data, which is that the vast majority of the people who have died on our roads did not have to die." For a more detailed look at the OPP's decade worth of data, visit http://bit.ly/1zxdP71. While the OPP remains hopeful that sharing its data may positively impact driver behaviour, closer to home Halton police are making it perfectly clear that it's not OK to drive with burned out headlights or taillights or with windows or licence plates obstructed by snow or ice. Section 74(1) of the Highway Traf c Act (HTA) requires drivers to have a clear view. If you are issued a ticket for such an offence, or for an obscured or faded licence plate, it carries a ne of $110. Project Visibility began last week with Halton of cers making motorists aware of their responsibility to ensure their vehicle is operated as safely as possible. In addition, Halton police were out on the roads in Oakville, just ahead of the long weekend, conducting spotchecks for impaired driving. While tickets were handed out for a few infractions, including driving without a licence and not producing a licence, the good news is that no impaired driving charges were laid. The fact is, the police can only do so much. Only by devoting 100 per cent of our attention to driving, all of the time, always driving sober, staying within the posted speed limit and utilizing seatbelts and helmets, are we likely to see fewer tragedies on our roads. Editorial I N N I G H T I N G A L E "Connected to your Community" W O O D S 447 Speers Road, Oakville ON, L6K 3S4 General Inquiries: (905) 845-3824 Editorial Department: (905) 632-0588 Classi ed Advertising: (905) 632-4440 Circulation: 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington (905) 631-6095 Volume 53 | Number 15 The Oakville Beaver is a division of Editorial and advertising content of the Oakville Beaver is protected by copyright. Unauthorized use is prohibited. VicePresident and Group Publisher of Metroland West Regional General Manager Halton Region Editor in Chief Advertising Director NEIL OLIVER DAVID HARVEY JILL DAVIS DANIEL BAIRD Managing Editor ANGELA BLACKBURN RIZIERO VERTOLLI Photography Director Business Manager SANDY PARE MARK DILLS Over the past week, two separate readers of the Oakville Beaver submitted photos of wildlife spotted in Nightingale Woods. At left, a coyote photographed by Oakville resident Jeffrey Grigg as he walked his dog Bentley in the woods near West Oak Trails Boulevard and Bloom eld Road. At right, a cute little opossum photographed by Nicole Dempsey behind her home near Nightingale Woods. | submitted photos Director of Production MANUEL GARCIA Production Manager Director of Distribution CHARLENE HALL KIM MOSSMAN Circulation Manager Letters to the Editor Election signs necessary, short-term eyesore Re: Election sign debate heads to Town Hall and Everywhere a sign, Oakville Beaver, Friday, Feb. 13, 2015. As a recent candidate for Catholic School Board Trustee in the October 2014 election, I can attest to the importance of campaign signs during the election period. Councillor Duddeck's motion to forbid election signs on public property during an election is misguided at best and self-serving for sitting councillors at worst. Election signs help to level the playing eld for new candidates and allow them to alert the public to their candidacy and invite them to learn more about their platform. As unsightly as the mass of signs may be, it is a necessary evil that we should maintain as part of the democratic process. The Town could shorten the period of time that signs are allowed to be posted and could set a limit on the number of signs each candidate is allowed based on the number of eligible voters. As messy-looking as the signs may have been, I was very impressed by how quickly they were removed following the election and don't agree with either the Oakville Beaver's editorial, nor the notion, that it is an environmental concern, beyond aesthetic taste. Incumbents can rely on ribbon-cutting ceremonies and media coverage to maintain name recognition between election campaigns, but if we want to encourage new blood to participate in the process, we must give them a chance to advertise themselves. Public signage is the most ef cient way to achieve the necessary name recognition. Anthony Quinn, Oakville Proud Official Media Sponsor For: Canadian Circulations Audit Board Member Recognized for Excellence by Ontario Community Newspapers Association Canadian Community Newspapers Association Proud Official Media Sponsor For: The Oakville Beaver welcomes letters from its readers. Letters will be edited for clarity, length, legal considerations and grammar. 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