Summer is almost here and with that comes more vehicles out and about on Chestermere streets. New teen drivers and looking forward to cruisin’ through town and many non-Chestermere visitors come to check out our awesome city.
The Chestermere RCMP would like to assist the driving public of the City of Chestermere in ensuring that their vehicles meet the Albert Vehicle Equipment Regulations. “Compliance with vehicle equipment regulations increase public safety in several ways but most importantly in preventing collisions, reducing injuries and damage from collisions, preventing or reducing damage to their vehicles of other users of the highways and by increasing driver and owner responsibility for their vehicles”, says Cst. Anderson and Cst. Quast.
The first step in achieving this goal will be through information and education. “We will be offering to examine the vehicles of any person that has questions or inquiries about whether or not their vehicles comply with the equipment regulations. For the latter half of May through June 7th, our focus will be on providing information to the public”, add the Constables.
RCMP members on duty at the Chestermere Recreation Centre parking lot on Saturday June 4th from 1pm to 3pm to examine any vehicles that drivers voluntarily bring in. They will also be repeating this on Tuesday June 7th in the parking lot of St. Gabriel’s school from 7pm – 9pm where they focusing on the young drivers in our community.
“Any driver wanting to have a police officer assist them in determining the legality of their vehicle equipment may attend either session. If neither time is available to you and you wish to ask an RCMP officer about your vehicle equipment, please feel free to contact the Chestermere RCMP detachment and ask to speak with an on duty member. If you have a unique or more technical question, our members will do their best to assist you with information or to put you in contact with another RCMP officer or other agency that can answer your question”, explains Cst. Anderson and Cst. Quast.
Now don’t worry, if you attend one of these two sessions and there is something found on your vehicle that needs to be corrected, you wouldn’t be ticketed, just educated on what the issue is and how to get it corrected.
Common vehicle equipment violations that the officers see are:
• Window tinting applied to the front door or windshield glass of your vehicle (and in certain cases back windows as well)
• Missing or inadequate mud guards and body fenders
• After market light kits with tinted finishes or missing key elements such as proper reflections
• Replacement light bulbs that are improper colors, flash, or do otherwise not meet manufacturers specifications
• Light systems or covers that obscure your license plate in any way
• Alterations of vehicle bumpers or suspension beyond that permitted by regulation
• Alterations of vehicle exhaust causing increase noise or reducing emission control compliance
• Installation of improper size wheels or tires on your vehicle without calibration of your speedometer
• Use of off-road only equipment while on-road (primarily light kits)
• Failure to maintain any of your vehicles safety equipment such as lights, tires, seat belts, brakes, glass, etc.
“As a public service it is the preference of the RCMP of the City of Chestermere to achieve our goals of improving vehicle equipment and safety through information and voluntary compliance. For non- compliance vehicle drivers can receive penalties ranging from a $78.00 fine per violation for the least serious offenses all the way up to removal of your vehicle from the roadways and having your vehicle subject to a full mechanical and safety inspection at the owners expense for the most serious violations”, adds the Constables.
