G licence drivers frequently breaking the rules, RCMP say
RCMP say not giving in to peer pressure can prevent many of the problems
RCMP are finding more and more that teenagers are "piling" into each other's cars and breaking the rules around being a driver within the graduated licence system.
"It's quite a frequent occurrence, especially on the weekends when the young drivers are more apt to be out and about," said Cst. Jamie Parsons with RCMP in Stratford.
"You do get one almost every weekend."
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The particular rule Parsons refers to is the one restricting the number of people allowed in the vehicle of a G driver, shown on the program website:
- Only one non-family member is permitted as a passenger. All other passengers must be members of the driver's immediate family.
Anyone caught breaking the rule will be issued a summary offence ticket with a fine up to $275 which also comes with demerit points, he said. Also, the driver's licence will be suspended for 30 days for the first offence and 90 days for the second.
This is easily avoidable, Parsons said, by following RCMP's number one rule of advice: don't give in to peer pressure.
'It's time to start thinking before you head out'
Parsons said one of the most common excuses he hears from new drivers is that "my friends were stuck for a ride" or "I'm sober driving."
"The last car I pulled over was a 16-year-old female driver and she had some youth in the car that were drinking earlier in the evening and her [excuse] was that she was pressured into sober driving these people home," he said.
"I get what she was trying to tell me, but at 16, 17, 18 years old these are young adults now — so it's time to start thinking before you head out into the nighttime. Make a plan to get home."
Even if driving sober, young drivers will be stopped and parents will be called to come get their kids or they'll be given a ride home by the police.
Another rule that's often being disobeyed is displaying the G decal in the windshield. Parsons said many drivers aren't showing their decals, or are taking them off the window "to try and trick us, as the police, that they're not a G driver."
"We fine someone not displaying the decal in the window and we think that they're doing it on purpose to deceive us," he said.