Police say driver was 'brake checking,' reaching speeds of 190 km/h on 401 in Chatham
OPP says these kinds of alleged road rage incidents rare, stunt driving on the rise
A 24-year-old man from Mississauga has been charged after allegedly driving 90 km/h over the speed limit on Highway 401 and slamming on his brakes in front of another driver.
Chatham-Kent OPP responded to a traffic complaint on the highway near Dillon Road on June 9 at 8:45 p.m.
The complainant told police they thought two vehicles were "racing and brake checking" each other. The OPP said one car was pulling in front of the other and slamming on his brakes — leading police to believe this was an incident of road rage.
"When you pull in front of another vehicle and you slam your brakes on, you don't know what the reaction time of that person's going to be and they may just end up hitting you," said Const. Jay Denorer, with the Chatham-Kent Ontario Provincial Police.
An officer set up his radar further down the highway then clocked a westbound vehicle reaching speeds over 190 km/h.
The driver was charged with racing a motor vehicle and driving with an open container of liquor.
Stunt driving seen more frequently
This is one of the first times an incident of brake checking has been reported on Highway 401 near Chatham, according to Denorer. But he said incidents of stunt driving are being observed at an increasing rate.
"I don't know if it's because it's a flat, open road and people feel that they have the right to drive over 150 km/h, but we actually have a lot of stunt driving in the area."
Second driver not charged
The OPP was only able to observe enough to charge one driver, who was allegedly brake checking. They could not determine if the second driver was speeding at all.
"What the complainant thought they saw was two people racing. It might've been the guy in the driving lane was driving normally and the other guy came speeding by him and slammed his brakes. It could've been some sort of road rage incident going on."
The charged driver will appear in court on August 22. His licence has been suspended and the vehicle has been impounded for seven days.