The BC Highway Patrol says a 52-year-old woman was fined $368 for allegedly using an electronic device while driving in Vernon.
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The BC Highway Patrol says officers observed what appeared to be a woman driving with an open laptop on her lap during a distracted driving operation in Vernon on Nov. 5 at about 4:30 p.m.
Police say the blue Honda Pilot was travelling on Highway 97 at the time, and that the woman has been fined $368 for use of an electronic device while driving.
Sgt. Michael McLaughlin said driving requires full attention. “Driving is a complex task that requires your complete attention to deal with the unexpected,” he said. “Just because you’re comfortable behind the wheel, and you have something you ‘need’ to do, doesn’t mean the rules of the road don’t apply to you.”
McLaughlin said the BC Motor Vehicle Act restricts more than cellphones, noting that prescribed electronic devices include televisions, electronic logging devices, and any hand-held device that can process or compute data. “It’s astonishing that we need to remind drivers that watching TV and using your laptop is illegal, or that holding a cell phone like a piece of pizza is not ‘hands free,’ but here we are.”
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