(Photo: Abby Zieverink/EverythingGP, staff)

By Abby Zieverink

Alberta RCMP

Alberta RCMP warns against speeding as spring approaches

Apr 5, 2022 | 1:31 PM

With spring having sprung in the Peace Region, RCMP officers across Alberta are reminding motorists to follow the rules of the road and obey the posted speed limits.

Sgt. Darrin Turnbull with Alberta RCMP Traffic Services says as the weather warms up and driving conditions become more ideal, many drivers think they can increase their speed.

While motorists are eager to give their vehicles a bit of a boost, Turnbull tells EverythingGP they do notice an uptick in tickets issued during this time of the year.

In April 2021, 5,220 speeding tickets were issued in Alberta RCMP jurisdictions.

“It happens every spring, what we see is people kind of feel it’s springtime, winter is over, now the roads are nice and we can get out and go for a drive or feel the need to feel the road is safer,” Turnbull explained.

Meaningful Mementos

Remembering Someone You've Lost at Christmas

Dec 03, 2024

Seasonal Sorrow

How Do You Get Through The Holidays When You're Grieving?

Nov 01, 2024

Upcoming Events at Oliver's

Grief & Loss and Estate Planning Seminars

Oct 02, 2024

He says the posted speed limit is the maximum speed a motorist can go under ideal conditions, and going past the speed limit could put themselves or other road users at risk.

“You might be doing everything right and paying attention but you’re speeding, thinking that you’re safe. But what you’ve done is, reduced your time to react to the hazard that you didn’t expect,” he said.

“Maybe it’s a motorcyclist who’s waiting to cross a roadway and he doesn’t see you, if you give yourself time to react by obeying the speed limit, you will then have time to hit the break and avoid the collision, you could save his life, because of his mistake.”

He mentions its crucial motorists drive to the conditions, meaning if the road conditions pose a risk, drivers should slow down.

“If you have a situation where even a little bit of rain – if there hasn’t been moisture on the roadways in a while – oil builds up on the roadways and sometimes can cause a sheen on the pavement that you might not even notice or realize how slick it really is.”

“Don’t let dry pavement give you a sense of safety and security,” he stated. “The speed limit is the speed limit and you cannot exceed that speed limit.”

Last year, there were 70,580 speeding-related offences in Alberta RCMP jurisdictions.

“Now this can be everything from speeding 10, 15, 20 km over the speed limit, or the fellow on Highway 2 near Red Deer who was going 193 km per hour and gave the excuse that he had to go to the bathroom,” explained Turnbull.

“We hear all the excuses all the time, and a lot of time it’s the same excuse ‘I was just going with the flow of traffic, I was just trying to pass that one car, I was just trying to make up a little bit of time.’”

While some motorists think their excuses will work, Turnbull explains they don’t mean anything – especially in a speeding situation as exceeding posted limits increases the risk of a collision and serious injury for all road users.

According to Alberta Transportation, more than half of all fatal collisions involving unsafe speeds occur in rural areas.

Motorists are also urged to slow down and drive with extra caution in playground and construction zones as these areas often have high pedestrian traffic.