An 18-year-old Langley ‘N’ driver may lose her licence after police pulled her over with four people sleeping in the bed of her truck and five crammed into the cab on Sunday, Aug. 12.
Not only was there nine people in the pickup, the new driver blew a ‘warn’ into a breathalyzer, said Langley RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Holly Marks.
Around midnight, police were called about an erratic driver of a GMC pickup in the Brookswood area.
A licence plate was given and officers were able to quickly locate the truck.
The teen’s pickup was pulled over in the 24400 block of Fraser Highway. As the officer approached the pickup, he saw four people sleeping in the bed of the truck. The driver told the officer they had just come from a party.
The officer suspected there had been drinking and the driver used a breathalyzer that registered a ‘warn.’
She was issued a three-day Immediate Roadside Prohibition and the vehicle was impounded, said Marks. ‘N’ drivers are not permitted to have any alcohol in their systems if driving.
Two of the four in the back were arrested. One was arrested for an outstanding warrant and the other for breaching a condition of his probation. There was a lot of intoxication involved, said Marks.
In this instance, a myriad of violation tickets could have been issued, said Marks. The driver still may face a Motor Vehicle Act violation of losing her licence, said Marks. She will also have to pay the impound costs.
She could have been fined $311 for allowing more passengers than available seatbelts.
She will be fined $109 for driving contrary to her ‘N’ licence restrictions, which only allows for one passenger.
Each person riding outside the vehicle could have been fined $167.
The legislation relative to the number of passengers permitted for a new driver has been developed for the safety of all involved, said Langley RCMP Insp. Amrik Virk.
“I have been at the worst possible collision scene where several young men lost their lives,” said Virk.
There have been at least two single-vehicle crashes where teenage boys lost their lives because of excessive speed and too many passengers riding with an ‘N’ driver.
“It was a combination of youth, exuberance, excessive passengers and speeding. Our officers will continue their vigilance in the enforcement of this legislation,” said Virk.
While it’s not too common to see passengers riding in the box of a pickup truck, it is worth mentioning the dangers associated with it, said Marks.
A vehicle doesn’t have to be going at a high rate of speed to make a fall from the back of a truck dangerous or even deadly. Of note, Rick Hansen was paralyzed at the age of 15, when the pickup he was riding in collided with a tree. He was riding in the box.
“In the warm weather, it might seem like harmless fun to have a few friends ride in the box of a pickup truck in a field or for a short distance,” said Marks.
“The reality is, even short distances and what would seem to be harmless fun, can have deadly consequences.”