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Driven Out

David Texeria
ReporterMaggie Clark
Editor-In-Chief

Tifa Han & Kevin Shahbazi

Proposed Ontario legislation targets, restricts young drivers in hope of curbing fatalities — but will Facebook save the day?

Youth all across Ontario are in an uproar about the proposed provincial legislation to amend the graduated licensing system in Ontario — and Facebook might just be their salvation.
Bill 126, tabled Tuesday, November 18 by transportation minister Jim Bradley, has three main amendments that will affect young drivers: first is a change in the restrictions on the blood alcohol content (BAC) of the driver; next is passenger restrictions for young G2 drivers; and the final mandates harsher speeding sanctions for novice drivers.
Conservative Party leader John Tory told the Ottawa Citizen that present backlash to Bill 126, the Road Safety Act, arises from not enough public consultation, stating that “If they had gone and asked even a small sample of people, they would have had some of the issues to chew on, and they might have taken a bit longer to do the bill a bit more thoughtfully.”
Thousands of youth members have expressed similar concerns through protest groups on Facebook, feeling especially that the new proposed system is extremely ageist towards them. As of press time, 122,892 Facebook users had joined the group “Young Drivers Against New Ontario Laws.” As this legislation targets the university age group, Bill 126 will greatly affect many UW students, who should be abridged of how these changes will affect them, and the arguments for their necessity.
The first proposed change would require zero tolerance BAC for drivers aged 21 and under. Right now the legal limit with a full G license is .08 per cent and age does not apply. The reasoning for this is because the peak ages for drinking and driving collisions are 19 to 21. This new proposition is not uncommon, having already been implemented in jurisdictions of New Brunswick and all 50 U.S. states. Similar legislation in these regions is often cited as one of the single most important reasons for a drop in young driver collisions in the U.S..
Furthermore, drinking and driving deaths count for approximately one quarter of all road deaths in Ontario. Just this weekend in Oakville this reporter (Texeria) came across a Reduce Impaired Driving Everywhere (R.I.D.E.) program. Because Texeria had four other teenagers in his vehicle, and was one himself, he was stopped under suspicion of impaired driving. (He then complied with a breathalyser test and passed.) The new legislation would make even this scenario impossible, as proposed restrictions extend to stating that G2 drivers and passengers aged 19 or younger would be restricted to carrying no more than one teenaged passenger who is not a sibling during the first year of having a G2 licence. This restriction has perhaps stirred the most protest among youth and youth advocates.
Special Constable Dunsford of UW Police Services, for instance, believes that “the graduated licence system introduced in the ‘90s was a great idea because automobile collisions went down approximately 39 per cent and it applied to people of all ages.” Of the new legislation, however, he stated that he felt it “infringes on young drivers and is leading back to the old system.” The current graduated licence system for G2 drivers is not as harsh, instead restricting passengers for the first six months between the hours of 12 a.m. and 5 p.m.. The proposed changes are greatly controversial, as they will make it harder for students to carpool to school or to sports, social, and work events. These changes could possibly also diminish the use of a designated driver, which is another very important factor in making sure there is a safe way home for intoxicated persons.
Premier Dalton McGuinty’s Liberal government told the Canadian Press that this legislation is being instituted because motor vehicle collisions are the leading cause of death for teens, and distractions [presumably other teens] should be avoided. They believe that with more people in the car teens are more likely to give into peer pressure to break the law. In fact, statistics show that teen drivers carrying 2 passengers are 17 times more likely to be involved in a collision than drivers aged 30-59, and carrying 3 or more passengers they are 33.6 times more likely.
A proposed three-strike system for speeding offences also has concerned citizens confused about the details: Drivers need to be convicted of speeding over 20 kilometers per hour, resulting in demerit points or a court-ordered suspension, to receive their first instance of a 30-day suspension. The second suspension is 90 days, and with the third instance drivers must return to the start of the graduated licensing program. This three-strike rule only affects novice drivers, and is in place to teach these new drivers to abide by the speed limit.
If this proposed legislation reduces fatalities by another 30 per cent then it will be here to stay. Charles Sousa, the Liberal MPP of Mississauga South, believes that the new legislation would indeed affect the youth positively; he has two teenagers who drive frequently. However, he appreciates the guiding force behind these changes is the desire for better and safer drivers, regardless of age, on the roads. On the other side, Elizabeth Witmer, MPP of the Progressive Conservative Party for the Kitchener-Waterloo region believes this proposed legislation is “ageist to all young drivers and will affect them greatly. It must go to public hearing.” She says this affects students, and to her, it does not make any sense that an adolescent can sign up for the military, go to war, and drive other military personnel in a different country but cannot carpool here. Witmer is for the zero tolerance BAC but not for the passenger restrictions, while John Tory and the whole Conservative Party are against the current proposed bill.
For students despairing of not being heard, however, there is a glimmer of hope; the Ottawa Citizen reported that McGuinty responded positively to news of the Facebook groups, stating that “I think we need to find a way to get onto Facebook ... I think we need to find a way to engage them in a dialogue in a social network where they are.” According to the London Free Press, McGuinty went on Facebook himself on Tuesday, November 25 to read some of items posted by students opposed to his government’s legislation.
Ontario government employees are not allowed to access Facebook on their work computers, but the London Free Press also reported that McGuinty was willing to lighten restrictions on this bill if it can help the government “reach out to young people.” Other road safety legislation being tabled in Ontario includes a ban on the use of hand-held devices, including cell phones, while driving in Ontario.

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Esq.	posted by Alyssa on Tuesday, 23 Dec 2008, 15:30:59

Driving is a privilege, not a right.
If the law is changed because there is evidence it may improve safety on our roads, perhaps it would be prudent to at the very least consider it.

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