Ontario Is Seeing One Of The Deadliest Years On The Roads & Police Say It's A 10 Year High

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There have been so many fatal car crashes in the province this year that Ontario Provincial Police said it's the highest they have seen since 2012.

In a news release published on May 16, OPP shared that "poor and careless driving behaviours" are behind most of the 107 fatalities that they have seen on their patrolled roads so far this year. According to police, this is a fatality rate that they haven't seen in a decade.

"Not since 2012 has the number of people killed in road collisions reached the 100 mark by the second week of May," the release reads.

Officers said that there are two driving behaviours that stand out the most in the preventable deadly car accidents this year: drivers who aren't paying attention to the road, and drivers who are under the influence of alcohol or drugs.

"Fatalities linked to driver inattention are up 79 per cent over this time last year, with the loss of 25 lives to date," OPP said.

Meanwhile, alcohol and drug-related fatalities claimed 15 lives on the roads this year, which is a 36% jump from last year's deaths at this time.

According to provincial police, there have been 27 speed-related fatalities on Ontario's roads so far in 2022, which makes it the leading cause of death on the roads.

"With 15 seat belt-related deaths marking a slight increase over last year, unsafe drivers as well as passengers (and drivers) who don't buckle up are setting the stage for an exceptionally tragic year on OPP-patrolled roads," the release reads.

So far in 2022, the OPP has responded to 88 deadly accidents, which is 13 more than what they saw at the same time last year.

This article's cover image was used for illustrative purposes only.