Extreme speeders should lose licence, says driving instructor

A St. John's driving instructor says when it comes to speeding, the worst offenders should lose their licence to be on the road and be forced to take a test to get it back.

Jim Brazil told the St. John's Morning Show Monday that existing penalties, which include finesand demerit points,are not enough.

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Brazil was reacting to a Thanksgivingpolice checkpoint which nabbed more than 400 speeding drivers, including one on PittsMemorial Drive near St. John's going 176 km/h and two in Corner Brook going 145 km/h in a 90 zone.

"When you're at that speed of 170, then you have significantly impaired yourself on a number of levels, in terms of your peripheral vision, in terms of the force of impact if you're ever involved in a collision," said Brazil, who works with Safety Services NL.

The Long Harbour 500 or theF-150parade, I've heard it called.- Jim Brazil

Under existing laws, a driver goingthat fast could getup to four demerit points and be charged with imprudent driving.

A licence is pulled once a driver accumulates12 demerit points, under current legislation. Fines depend on how much over the speed limit you are.

"People shouldconsider driving as a privilege, not something that's a right," said Brazil, who wants the Newfoundland and Labrador government to revisit the regulations, and treat extreme speeds the same as drunk driving.

Testing to get privileges back

He's also floating the idea of a make-up exam for bad drivers.

"Once you've had that two-month suspension that comes from accumulating 12 points on your driver's abstract, then before you get your licence back it's not a simple matter of doing an education course, butit's also a matter of really being tested to see whether or not you should be on the road again."

Brazil said the province's roads are getting more dangerous, especially on sections near major worksites such as Bull Arm and Long Harbour.

"I don't go on the roads when there's a shift change at Long Harbour simply because I know the nature of what's going on," he said.

"The Long Harbour 500 or theF-150parade, I've heard it called."