Southeast Regional Traffic Services, which includes Yorkton, cleared four outstanding warrants during the RCMP's monthly traffic enforcement blitz on Thanksgiving weekend.
Sgt. Pete Garvey, commander of the Yorkton rural detachment, downplayed the effort saying, "it was nothing too exciting," but "F" Division spokesperson Sgt. Paul Dawson lauded the accomplishment.
"There's a lot of good work going on out there," Dawson said.
Province-wide, 858 tickets were issued, but perhaps the most pertinent statistic was the number of drivers who are still not respecting construction zones. Eleven per cent of all tickets written over the three-day period were for speeding in a construction zone.
Orange zone safety became a hot button issue in the summer when 18-year-old Ashley Dawn Richards was killed by an SUV while working as a flag person just north of Midale.
"Our members are looking to increase awareness of specific risky behaviour, such as speeding through construction zones," Dawson said.
The good news is only one fatality collision was reported on the weekend, compared to a five-year average of three. The one death was the result of a rollover of a Ford pickup truck attended by Melville RCMP near Neudorf on Sunday. Police are not releasing the name of the victim.
Traffic deaths also became a hot topic in the summer with a record 30 fatalities in August alone.
"Thankfully that pace didn't continue into September and October," Dawson said.
The Yorkton detachment was particularly busy. Garvey said his members handed out 202 tickets, nearly a quarter of the provincial total.
