A team of 17 volunteers with the Abbotsford Police Department (APD) have taken top spot in the 2019 ICBC Speed Watch Challenge.
Speed Watch volunteers set up at high-crash locations with portable speed-radar equipment and big flashing reader boards to alert drivers to how fast they’re going.
Volunteers record the vehicle speeds and submit their reports to the traffic enforcement unit and ICBC.
Areas with high incidents of speeding are considered for future police enforcement.
The Speed Watch Challenge encourages more deployments and patrol hours in the community. The winning group is based on the the highest per cent increase of patrol hours for the month of May when compared to May 2017.
The APD volunteers had the highest per cent increase – 477 per cent – as well as an increase of 1,232 per cent in the number of vehicles checked and 20 per cent more deployments.
In 2017, the group conducted 84 deployments and checked 10,059 vehicles.
In May 2019 alone, they clocked 13,530 vehicles and recorded 24 deployments.
Tanis Hatch, local ICBC road safety coordinator, congratulated the team on their accomplishment.
“They worked hard and are clearly dedicated to helping keep Abbotsford roads safe,” she said.
Anyone who would like Speech Watch in their area is asked to contact tjeske@abbypd.ca.
Visit abbypd.ca/volunteer-opportunities for more information about volunteering in Speech Watch or other APD programs.
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