Regina police hop on public transit to bust distracted drivers

Regina residents have extra incentive to stay off their phones when driving with Operation Bus Cop firing up once again.

Starting Monday, and throughout coming weeks, traffic safety officers with the Regina Police Service will be ridingthe transit system to detect and discourage distracted driving.

• Bus(ted): Starting today, Regina police riding transit to nab distracted drivers

Uniformed police will be on the lookout for all types of distracted driving, but particularly people using cellphones.

Riding the bus gives officers an elevated view of motorists.

Officers on buses will inform other officers in marked cars of distracted drivers. Police in marked vehicles will pull over and ticket the offenders.

Distracted driving is Saskatchewan's number one cause of traffic collisions,according toSGI.

• Distracted driving charges skyrocket in Sask.

In 2016, distracted driving was a factor in:

• 42 fatalities
• 1,205 injuries
• 8,300 crashes

In a release, Regina police said they hope this initiative will help convince people to change dangerous behaviour while driving and reduce the number of related crashes.