'No excuse' for $1,000 speeding tickets, says Saskatoon police

On Aug. 14, a 16-year-old driver sped down the highway near Radisson at 199 kilometres per hour, blowing past the posted 110 speed limit.

Saskatoon police stopped him and the teen was slapped with a ticket of $1,235 and a seven-day vehicle impoundment, which he was also on the hook to pay for.

That's just one example from the month of August, where drivers have been caught going more than 50 kilometres over the speed limit, racking up fines of $1,000 or more.

The Saskatoon Police Service Traffic Unit has been posting some of the more outrageous examples of speeding on their Twitter account. There were six examples in August.

The big numbers are bolstered by the rise in the price of tickets that went into effect in May. The base fine increased by $30 and any per-kilometre extra charges doubled.

Staff Sergeant Patrick Barbar said most of these speeders were on the highways, where people think they can get away with speeding, but some were in the city — a trend he thinks is increasing.

"We've had examples of people in 50 zones exceeding 100 kilometres an hour," Barbar said. "There was one on the Broadway Bridge not too long ago that was caught at 101.

"That appears to be a somewhat newer phenomenon, to have those high speeds in an urban area, and that's actually really frightening."

He doesn't know why people seem to be speeding more in Saskatoon but he does want to make sure people are aware of the financial consequences, hence the tweets.

More police on the highways

High speeds, especially on highways, is nothing new, Barbar said.

What is new, though, is the Combined Traffic Services of Saskatchewan initiative.

The partnership with the RCMP is funded by the provincial government and sends city police onto highways to help catch more speeders.

Saskatoon police signed on in 2014 and Barbar says it's working.

"As enforcement increases, collisions come down. It's a fact. You can't argue that. It's been proven over and over again. We've proved it here in the City of Saskatoon. Having more police out there does save lives."

A second unit launched in June 2015 in the Weyburn/Estevan area, and Regina, Moose Jaw and Prince Albert police services joined the program earlier in 2018.

'No excuse'

Barbar said the most common excuse he hears for speeding is that people are late.

"I don't know that they actually believe it — but they'll tell you that being late makes it okay for them to be speeding. Obviously it doesn't because you're still putting others at risk…. There is no excuse to be going that kind of speeds."