RCMP charge driver going double the speed limit in construction zone

Incident occurred just two weeks after a construction worker was struck and injured at a different site in St. Albert.

The St. Albert RCMP have charged a driver going double the speed limit in a construction zone, just weeks after a worker was hit. On Wednesday, July 8, shortly before 4:30 p.m., an officer spotted a black Jeep entering a construction zone on Ray Gibbon Drive, where the St. Albert RCMP Traffic Services Unit was conducting a speed enforcement operation. The officer found the driver was travelling 113 km/h in the 50 km/h construction zone.

Upon stopping the vehicle, the officer issued the driver — a 33-year-old Edmonton resident — a summons and the driver will make his first appearance in the St. Albert Provincial Court of Justice on Tuesday, Aug. 25. If convicted, he could face a $2,500 fine, jail time, and/or up to a three month driver's licence suspension. The incident occurred less than two weeks after an incident where a flagperson at another construction site in St. Albert was struck by a different motorist.

That flagperson suffered a broken leg, and the driver was charged with driving carelessly. RCMP Traffic Services Cpl. Curtis Harsulla said it's important to have extra awareness when travelling through construction zones.

"Not only do the speed fines double when workers are present, but the risk of severely injuring or killing a worker is unacceptable. As well, posted speed limits also apply when workers are not present as there may be hazards or road alterations which the usual speed could prove dangerous," Harsulla said.