‘Alarmingly’ bad driving causing spike in road deaths, OPP says

The Ontario Provincial Police say “alarmingly poor and dangerous driving behaviours” are to blame for a spike in fatal crashes on provincial roads in the first six months of the year.

To date, the OPP said it has responded to 136 fatal collisions in which 150 people were killed. Last year by this time, there were 103 fatal road crashes and 125 deaths. 

“The current rise in fatalities follows a year that saw an already historically high number of deaths on OPP-patrolled roads, with 2022's 359 fatalities marking a 16-year high,” the OPP said in a news release.

From June 1 to 11, the OPP said it responded to 15 fatal collisions resulting in 18 fatalities, up from four fatal collisions and four fatalities over the same 11-day period last year. 

“What has not changed are the alarmingly poor and dangerous driving behaviours that consistently contribute to these road deaths such as speeding, careless driving, driver inattention, driver fatigue, alcohol/drug consumption and lack of seatbelt use,” OPP said.

In the release, the OPP said it was “appealing to all motorists” to shape up — the bad behaviours causing the majority of crashes are all avoidable, the OPP said.