Don't expect any leniency from police if you're caught driving with a suspended licence, and that includes snowmobiles, according to Greater Sudbury Police Service.

There are more than 8,700 people in the city with suspended driver's licences, and that's a “staggering” number, according to traffic Sgt. Eric Sanderson. That, plus the fact that 17 collisions involving snowmobiles took place during the sledding season last year, is driving the police service to focus on snowmobile-related issues for the month of February.

Those licence suspensions are attributed to a variety of reasons and can be something like an unpaid speeding ticket, but the fact that a city the size of Sudbury has that many suspended licences, it “just blows my mind,” Sanderson said.

“Driving is a privilege, not a right, and if you're caught with a suspended licence, expect to be charged,” he said. “If you don't have a valid driver's licence, you have no right to be driving.”

Of the collisions reported last year, most resulted in injuries to the operator or passenger and 10 were attributed to excessive speed as a primary cause. The majority of collisions occur on Sundays and Mondays, Sanderson said, and most will result in some form of injury.

“There is very little protection on a snowmobile,” he said.

Driving with a suspended licence can lead to many other issues outside of enforcement, he added. For example, anyone involved in a collision with another snowmobile operator driving without a licence might find themselves with nowhere to turn if the insurance company doesn't pay up for the collision.

The GSPS' traffic management unit is continuing with its program to address traffic-related issues within the city, with the intention to enhance the safety of area roadways and to promote public awareness of proper driving, vehicle operation behaviours and roadway use.

Officers of the traffic management unit's snowmachine patrol and uniformed officers will be attending trails and trail crossings throughout the city conducting enforcement of safety and suspended drivers.

The monthly roadway safety initiatives have been identified through public complaints, operator errors that were identified through the use of collision investigation data and the use of intelligence driven policing.

The public is reminded that alcohol and sledding do not mix and that they can expect to see spot checks on the trails throughout the remainder of the sled season.

Officers are capable of determining the status of a driver’s licence through the use of the in-car computers that have been implemented in recent years for frontline policing within the GSPS.

Drivers who are caught driving while suspended can expect their vehicles to be towed and held for seven days through the Provincial Vehicle Impoundment Program and to be charged accordingly.

The fines applicable for a conviction of driving while under suspension pursuant to the Highway Traffic Act are significant and also include potential jail time as shown below.

- for a first offence, a fine of no less than $1,000 and no more than $5,000; and
- for each subsequent offence, a fine of no less than $2,000 and no more than $5,000, or to imprisonment for a term of no more than six months, or to both.

Posted by Arron Pickard