Traffic accidents in Delta are down but “persons offences” are up, compared to this time last year.
According to recently released Delta Police Department stats, collisions were down in the third quarter of 2018, with 256 incidents from July through September, compared to 334 crashes during the same time span in 2017.
“Fewer collisions generally means fewer injuries, so we’re very thankful for that,” DPD Chief Neil Dubord said in a press release. “Traffic and pedestrian safety issues are one of our community concerns and we’ve made a concerted effort to work with the community to make our streets safer.”
Dubord highlighted the traffic section’s work on social media, such as the Tell Us Where To Go campaign where the public can direct police to areas of concern. Traffic enforcement continued to increase, with 3,477 violation tickets handed out in the third quarter, as compared to 2,547 in the third quarter last year.
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Meanwhile, persons offences — which involve serious crimes such as assaults — were up last quarter, 96 in 2018, compared to 84 in the third quarter of 2017.
“Looking at the data over the past three years, we’ve noted that really only assaults have increased compared to the three year trend line, up seven per cent year-to-date, on average,” Dubord said. “We had relatively low numbers in 2017, and across Metro Vancouver persons offences are up eight per cent year-to-date.”
Dubord noted that 77 per cent of all assaults in Delta this year involved people who are known to each other, while “stranger assaults” included loss prevention officers dealing with a shoplifter, road rage incidents or health practitioners dealing with someone experiencing a crisis. Drugs or alcohol were a factor in about one third of all assaults.
“One important fact is that of our 181 assault files in Delta by the end of August, only two files had any links to gangs or the current gang conflict,” Dubord said. “We think this can probably be attributed to our model of policing and programs … and our committed community.”
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