Tough new penalties will come into effect on Oct. 1, aimed at deterring drivers from stunting and street racing, according to SGI.
The cost of a ticket for stunting will increase from $150 to $580, plus four demerit points.
Tickets for street racing will go up from $205 to $580 for the first offence and escalate for repeat offences within a one-year time period. This includes $1,400 for a second offence and $2,100 for a third offence. All street racing tickets come with four demerit points.
“Reckless and unsafe driving behaviours like street racing and stunting are a growing concern,” said Minister Responsible for SGI Don Morgan. “These risky choices can have serious and often life-threatening consequences, and the penalties need to appropriately address them.”
Even before the new penalties, a ticket for street racing comes with an immediate 30-day vehicle impoundment, while repeat offfences come with three-day impoundments.
A second phase of the legislation that is coming at a later date will implement a 30-day impoundment as well as an immediate seven-day licence suspension for stunting, racing and exceeding the speed limit by more than 50 km/h or by more than double the posted speed limit.
Under the Traffic Safety Act, street racing is defined as:
- Racing side by side with another vehicle while disobeying the speed limit
- Chasing another vehicle
- Speeding in and out of lanes to unsafely pass vehicles
- Driving at a speed that is a marked departure from the speed limit.
Stunting is defined as:
- Attempting to lift some or all tires from the roadway (including driving a motorcycle on one wheel)
- Attempting to spin a vehicle to cause it to spin or circle
- Driving a vehicle while not sitting in the driver’s seat
- Driving in the oncoming lane longer than is needed to pass
- Driving a vehicle in a way that prevents another vehicle from passing
- Stopping or slowing down to interfere with the movement of another vehicle