Enforcement of traffic law ‘reduces fatal crashes’

STRICT enforcement of traffic laws reduces the number of road deaths, a study published yesterday reveals.

According to Professor Donald A Redelmeier, of Sunnybrook and Women’s College Health Sciences Centre in Toronto, traffic law enforcement reduces the frequency of fatal crashes in countries with heavy traffic. The team studied every fatal road crash in Canada for the last 11 years involving fully licensed, identifiable drivers. Of the near 9,000 licensed drivers that had fatal crashes during that time, they had 21,501 driving convictions between them - equivalent to about one conviction per driver every five years.

They found that drivers’ attitudes changed if they received a driving conviction, but only for a short period of time.