This is just another reminder to leave your phone alone while driving. A video uploaded on Twitter shows a Surrey RCMP officer going up to a driver waiting in a McDonald’s drive-thru.
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Take a look for yourself:
https://twitter.com/DrDangles87/status/1126266193424207872
As you might expect, people have mixed reactions to this incident.
Why don't they go catch some drug dealers or something 🙄
— Care 🖤 (@Carezzzz) May 9, 2019
https://twitter.com/mysteriousrai/status/1126313342165864449
Hey @SurreyRCMP is this considered “distracted driving” even if it’s on private property?
Can you clarify this for us??
— Alan Kelly (@Alan_B_Happy) May 9, 2019
That is terrible. It is arguable that a drive-thru is private property and not governed by the MVA. I would take that case.
— Kyla Lee, B.A., J.D. (@IRPlawyer) May 9, 2019
Surrey RCMP responded to the video and stated that there was no ticket given to the driver and that “the officer issued a verbal warning to the driver after observing them allegedly using a device while driving prior to entering the drive thru area”.
The tweet also says that “discretion is used by officers when enforcing this law, with public safety always being top of mind”.
No ticket was issued. The officer issued a verbal warning to the driver after observing them allegedly using a device while driving prior to entering the drive thru area. Discretion is used by officers when enforcing this law, with public safety always being top of mind.
— Surrey RCMP (@SurreyRCMP) May 9, 2019
So can you really get a ticket for using your phone in a drive-thru?. According to the BC Motor Vehicle Act, the answer is yes.
Under the BC Motor Vehicle Act, parking lots and drive thrus are considered part of the road way, and are subject to enforcement of the BC Motor Vehicle Act which prohibits the use of electronic devices while driving.
— Surrey RCMP (@SurreyRCMP) May 9, 2019
You might want to think twice about pulling out that phone next time you pull into a drive-thru.
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