A West Kelowna woman has been ticketed for driving with an open laptop on her lap in Vernon, B.C. Highway Patrol said.
An officer pulled over the 52-year-old driver of a blue Honda Pilot on Highway 97 (32 Street) just after 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 5, police said. She was issued a $368 ticket for using an electronic device while driving under section 214.2(1) of the Motor Vehicle Act.
The stop came during a 2½-hour distracted driving operation in Vernon that also resulted in 25 tickets for cellphone use and 10 for seatbelt violations.
“Driving is a complex task that requires your complete attention to deal with the unexpected,” said Sgt. Michael McLaughlin of B.C. Highway Patrol. “Just because you’re comfortable behind the wheel, and you have something you ‘need’ to do, doesn’t mean the rules of the road don’t apply to you.”
McLaughlin said the law covers more than phones.
“Prescribed electronic devices in the BC Motor Vehicle Act include televisions, electronic logging devices, and any hand-held device that can process or compute data,” he said. “It’s astonishing that we need to remind drivers that watching TV and using your laptop is illegal, or that holding a cell phone like a piece of pizza is not ‘hands free,’ but here we are.”
The ticket also carries four driver penalty points.
