A rash of incidents involving a vehicle travelling the wrong way on a highway or road has the Ontario Provincial Police raising awareness about what drivers should do when encountering a vehicle travelling the wrong way towards oncoming traffic.
Between October 5th and November 5th, 2018 the OPP responded to 25 reports of a vehicle travelling the wrong way. A collision occurred in five of the incidents and two people lost their lives in two of the crashes. Twelve (12) charges have been laid so far in five of the incidents, two of which are driving while ability impaired by alcohol and/or drugs.
On Wednesday, October 10th, 17-year-old Joshua Seguin died when his car, headed east in the westbound lanes of highway 401, collided with a tractor-trailer near the Morrisburg overpass.
Wrong-way driver dies on 401 this morning, westbound lanes remain closed near Morrisburg overpass [Nation Valley News]
Victim identified in Highway 401 wrong-way crash near Morrisburg [Cornwall Newswatch]
On Tuesday, November 6th, a passenger vehicle was travelling eastbound on County Road 2 near Long Sault when, for reasons under investigation, crossed the center of the roadway and struct a westbound passenger vehicle.
Serious injuries in motor vehicle collision near Long Sault [The Morrisburg News]
There were 182 wrong-way vehicle incidents on OPP-patrolled roads last year (2017) and 207 so far this year (2018).
When drivers encounter a vehicle travelling the wrong way towards oncoming traffic, they should immediately and safely pull over to the side of the road, call 9-1-1 and provide their location, a description of the vehicle and the license plate number if possible.
The OPP is reminding drivers to pay full attention to the road and observe all directional signage, especially when driving on busy, multi-lane highways.
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