Safety priority after 3 deaths

Photo: Colin Dacre

RCMP are stressing the importance of motorcycle safety after three recent fatalities on South Okanagan highways.

In the month of June, three crashes, two in Oliver and one on Highway 97 near Summerland, claimed lives. 

Penticton Supt. Ted De Jager said police are encouraging riders to undergo training courses to make sure they are up to date on their safety precautions. It's also a matter of all drivers sharing the road responsibly.

"We just ask that both the non-motorcycle public as well as the motorcycle public really be aware of the conditions that are out there," De Jager said. "Highway 97 between Penticton and Summerland is 100 km an hour, undivided, so I guess I would say people need to have their undivided attention on the road."

He said distracted driving doesn't just mean being on a mobile device — drinking a coffee, eating a sandwich, checking your reflection or anything else that takes your attention off the road can have dire consequences. 

"Most defensive driving motorcycle courses would say that it's not so much your driving that's the issue, it's the other drivers on the road, although in these cases there certainly has been driver error and conditions, so those are always contributing factors," De Jager said.