Vancouver police blitz tickets more than a thousand drivers for texting, speeding

The Vancouver Police Department announced today (May 17) that it had ticketed more than 1,000 drivers so far in May as part of its monthlong campaign to combat high-risk behaviours behind the wheel.

As of June 1, new tickets for distracted driving with a phone in hand will cost dangerous drivers $543 ($368 fine plus $175 to pay off the now-four point offence).

In a news release, the VPD identified texting as one of those behaviours, along with failing to yield to pedestrians and other drivers, speeding, and following too closely.

It said that more than 1,100 tickets had been issued so far in May.

In 2014, 66 people died in accidents in B.C. as a result of distracted driving, making it one of the most dangerous driving practices.