Deadly crashes were up slightly year in 2023 from the year before, Chatham-Kent police say.
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In a presentation Wednesday, the police services board heard there were 14 fatal collisions in 2023, up from 11 in 2022. There were eight life-threatening crashes, up one from the year before.
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The traffic unit investigates these serious crashes, and assists others when needed. The unit was called out 25 times, down one from 2022.
Of the 14 fatal crashes, eight involved drug and/or alcohol impairment and one resulted from a driver medical episode, police said. The remaining five were due to other driving behaviors.
Of the 22 serious crash probes, eight resulted in charges, 11 resulted in no charges, two were still under investigation and one was due to medical causes.
The traffic update was part of the community patrol branch’s annual report, offering statistics and year-ahead goals for various units within the department.
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The traffic unit’s mandate is to “help reduce collisions through enforcement and road safety,” said presenter acting sergeant Kristen Charron.
Continuing to strengthen partnerships with other organizations is also key, she added.
Chatham-Kent police drug recognition experts assisted with 19 traffic probes in 2023, a 46 per cent increase from the year before.
A total of 4,091 vehicles were stopped in RIDE programs, with 41 roadside breath tests administered, police said. Officers laid one impaired charge and three other criminal counts and issued two three-day license suspensions and eight provincial offense notices.
As for provincial offenses in general, officers laid 3,143 charges, police said. The traffic unit issued 1,165 of those.
Commercial vehicle safety blitzes in Chatham-Kent, conducted in partnership with Ontario’s Transportation Ministry of Transportation, saw 53 vehicles taken out of service and 130 charges laid, police saudi.
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