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You can find the non-emergency number on the first inside page of your phone book. | You can find the non-emergency number on the first inside page of your phone book. | ||
==Drinking and driving== | |||
{{ | British Columbia has very strict laws about drinking and driving. | ||
Alcoholic drinks, such as beer, wine and liquor, can make you an impaired driver. | |||
If you cause an accident while drinking and driving, you may have to pay a fine, or go to jail. ICBC may not pay the costs if you cause an accident after you have been drinking. You may have to pay the costs yourself. Your insurance may also cost more. | |||
===If you are caught drinking and driving=== | |||
The police can stop you to check if you have been drinking alcohol. | |||
Police can ask you to provide a breath sample into a roadside screening device. The device measures how much alcohol you have in your blood. | |||
If you are caught driving with a blood-alcohol content ''over 0.05'': | |||
*You will lose your driver’s licence immediately. | |||
*You will pay a fine. | |||
*You may also lose your vehicle. If you do, you will pay all the towing and storage fees. | |||
*You will pay to get your licence back. | |||
In addition to these penalties, you can be charged with a crime and have to go to court if: | |||
*you are caught driving with a blood-alcohol content ''over 0.08'', or | |||
*you refuse to provide a breath sample. | |||
If you are found guilty in court, you can: | |||
*be prohibited from driving for at least a year, and | |||
*pay more for car insurance. | |||
{{FmboxPLS | |||
| text = '''If you are caught using drugs and driving'''<br/> | |||
When you are driving, police can stop you and check to see if you have been taking drugs. They can order you to give them samples of blood, oral fluid or urine.<br/> | |||
The penalties are like those for drinking and driving. They include fines and penalty points on your driving record.<br/> | |||
You can also be charged with a crime and have to go to court. | |||
}} | |||
==Seat belts and child car seats== | |||
In British Columbia, all drivers and passengers must were seat belts. | |||
There is a fine for not wearing a seat belt. | |||
British Columbia also has rules about using child car seats. | |||
*Children from birth to over 9 kilos (20 pounds) must sit in a baby seat in the middle of the back seat, facing the back of the car. | |||
*Children between 9 and 18 kilos (20 to 40 pounds) must sit in a child safety seat in the back seat. | |||
*Children until they reach 145 cm or 4’9” must sit in a booster seat that raises them to the correct level for the seat belts. | |||
Keep all children in the back seat until 12 years of age, away from active airbags. | |||
In some communities, the local fire hall will check your child car seat to make sure it is safe. | |||
For more information, call the free Child Seat Info Line at 1.877.247.5551. You can also go online to Child Seat Info at [http://www.tsfbcaa.com/11.aspx www.tsfbcaa.com/11.aspx]. | |||
==Traffic tickets== | |||
You must pay a fine if the police catch you breaking traffic laws, such as driving through a red light or driving faster than the speed limit. | |||
Drivers who break a traffic law also get driver penalty points on their driving record. For example: | |||
:You get three driver penalty points for speeding. Drivers with more than three points in one year must pay extra money to ICBC for their insurance. | |||
You might get a traffic ticket you do not think is fair. Or you might have been charged the wrong amount. If so, you have 30 days to fight the ticket. | |||
To find out how to fight a traffic ticket, go to [http://www.clicklaw.bc.ca www.clicklaw.bc.ca]. Go to the section called “Solve Problems” and search for "traffic ticket." | |||
==Cell phones== | |||
When you are driving, it is against the law to use a hand-held cell phone or any other electronic device you hold in your hands. | |||
Learner or novice drivers cannot use any cell phone and electronic devices, including those that are hands-free. | |||
==Pedestrians== | |||
The laws in Canada about people crossing the road are different from those in many other countries. Drivers must stop and wait for pedestrians in a '''crosswalk''' or in an intersection. | |||
===Intersections=== | |||
Any place where two streets meet is an intersection. At an intersection, you must stop if you see pedestrians waiting to cross the road. | |||
When you approach any intersection, look left and right to see if there are pedestrians waiting to cross. | |||
If a vehicle is stopped in front of you or in the lane next to you, they may be waiting for a person to cross the road, so be prepared to stop. | |||
===Crosswalks=== | |||
The roads in our cities and town have crosswalks. They can be marked by: | |||
*white lines across the road, | |||
*flashing lights, or | |||
*traffic lights. | |||
Drivers must always stop if anyone is walking in a crosswalk. | |||
{{REVIEWED | reviewer = [[People's Law School]], 2011}} | |||
{{Driving in BC Navbox}} | {{Driving in BC Navbox}} | ||