To the editor:
Newspaper editorials and radio ads don’t seem to be deterring people from phoning and texting while they drive.
If this is indeed as big a problem as ICBC says it is, then perhaps it’s time to try something a little bolder.
I believe the problem is not the size of the fine but rather that the chances of getting caught are just about zero.
Quite rightly, the police would rather spend their time on bigger problems. So, let’s have ICBC hire enforcement officers (not unlike city bylaw officers) to observe and record drivers who are breaking the law. Use hand-held cameras to catch people in the act and record their faces and license plates without actually having to pull them over.
Send them a ticket in the mail along with a photograph. I’m sure the officers could easily pay for their own salaries and have plenty of cash left over for ICBC to use in their general operating budget. There are likely many details to iron out before this idea could come to fruition.
But, let’s try something new because whatever we’ve got going on now certainly isn’t working.
Lloyd Vinish, Kelowna
