Essex County had the highest number of distracted driving charges in the west region after a recent OPP campaign.
Essex County OPP laid 60 distracted driving charges and 6 careless driving charges in relation to distracted driving during the blitz from March 14-20.
By comparison, Chatham-Kent OPP OPP laid 35 charges involving hand-held devices, and three distraction-related careless driving charges. Police say these numbers are alarming considering the continued attention and education programs on the topic.
The entire west region had 583 distracted driving related offences. Provincially, OPP laid 2576 charges in the same time period.
The campaign included officers conducting targeted enforcement of distracted driving laws on roads and highways across the province, as well as a focus sharing the message on social media.
