Volunteers in Mission and Abbotsford contributed more than 1,200 hours to help reduce speed-related crashes last year and handed out 3,800 notices to help prevent auto crime, according to ICBC.
These volunteers participated in the Speed Watch program, in which they used radar and set up speed-reader boards supplied by ICBC to show drivers the speed they’re travelling.
The program is often set up at high-crash locations and in school and playground zones.
Donald Miller, local ICBC road safety coordinator, said research shows that these programs work, with more than 70 per cent of drivers travelling 10 km/h over the speed limit slowing down when they see a speed-reader board.
Volunteers also often partner with police who will ticket drivers who don’t slow down after seeing their speed on the reader board.
Volunteers also operated the Lock Out Auto Crime program, posting notices resembling parking tickets onto the windshields of vehicles, many with valuables in sight, offering drivers tip to protect themselves from becoming the victims of auto crime.
They also operated the Stolen Auto Recovery program, checking more than one million vehicles in 2013 to look for signs of theft and help identify stolen vehicles.
In addition, a new program, Cell Watch, was introduced last year across the province to combat distracted driving. In 2013, Lower Mainland volunteers spent over 2,900 hours reminding drivers not to use their cellphones.
For more information about volunteering with ICBC in Abbotsford or Mission, contact Donald Miller at 604-850-8083.