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www.oakvillebeaver.com The Oakville Beaver, Friday May 16, 2008 - 7 Police out to put the brakes on street racing Police in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA) are combining resources to battle a group that's dangerous and often highly organized -- street racers. Project E.R.A.S.E. (Eliminate Racing Activity on Streets Everywhere) launched in Markham Tuesday with the support of 12 law enforcement agencies -- including Halton police. Since 1999, 42 lives have been lost to street racing in the GTA. In an interview on Wednesday, a Halton officer said the problem is widespread. "As long as there have been cars and kids, this problem has existed," said Acting-Sgt. Nick McConnell of the District Response Unit in Burlington. "It's a problem that's not limited to the City of Burlington or the Region of Halton. It's a problem that's region wide, province wide and nation wide." Local street racing tragedies include a May 2003 crash on Burloak Drive that claimed the lives of Travis Lopes, 18, and Myron Dmytriw, 20, -- both of Oakville. "It's an extremely dangerous activity," said McConnell about street racing. "It's the worst thing to have to knock on a door at 2 or 3 a.m. and tell (parents) their kid is dead or injured." McConnell said it's also very tragic when an innocent person is killed because of street racing. Project E.R.A.S.E. participants include mainly GTA police forces, the Ontario Provincial Police (OPP), the Ministry of Transportation (MTO) and the Ministry of Environment (MOE). McConnell said police forces will combat street racing with a combination of law enforcement and education at venues like car shows. However, he said, some street racers are extremely organized. "The more hard core (racers) have police scanners and intelligence about what nights the police are out in force," said McConnell. "They'll say `meet on such and such a night' on their websites, but you have to sign into them and get a password." McConnell said last year, street racers "As long as there have been cars and kids, this problem has existed." Acting-Sgt. Nick McConnell, Halton Regional Police An 18-year-old Oakville man was charged and the family vehicle was seized for seven days. McConnell said young men seem to be the main group involved in street racing, but some young women and older adults are involved as well. He said impromptu races sometimes occur. "One person pulls up to a light (beside) another person and then they go," said McConnell. The Burlington OPP detachment gets its "fair share" of incidents where racing or extremely high speeds are involved, said Const. Graham Williamson, an OPP media relations officer. He said recent provincial statistics showed about 90 per cent of 4,202 suspensions and impoundments issued (under the street racing law) were for speeding. Williamson said nearly 85 per cent of the drivers involved were men. were regularly meeting at a location on the Oakville-Mississauga border. He declined to mention other specific problem areas or timing of extra patrols in Halton to avoid tipping off racers. "There are certain areas of Halton where it's more concentrated and we'll be observing that," said McConnell, adding that enforcement is starting this month and will continue throughout the summer. He said police will be looking for violations involving illegal equipment on the cars and safety. The MTO will provide mechanical inspections and the MOE will check for illegal emissions. This year marks the first summer since Ontario's street racing law came into effect last September. The tougher law provides more severe penalties for driving 50 km-h over the posted speed limit. Penalties include a seven-day seizure of the vehicle, a seven-day licence suspension for the driver, six licence demerit points and fines of $2,000-$10,000 upon conviction. There are similar penalties for stunt driving, such as doughnuts (spinning a vehicle), motorcycle wheelies and other unsafe manoeuvres. "It's quite powerful legislation that gives us an extra tool in our arsenal," said McConnell. He noted if the car is owned by the speeding driver's parents, it's still impounded for seven days. This happened following a recent incident where a vehicle was clocked at 103 km-h on Upper Middle Road near Mountain Grove Avenue in Burlington, where the speed limit is 50 km-h. Howard Williams.ca After 130 years, our first sale ever, is also our very last sale. Howard Williams Jewellers is GOING OUT OF BUSINESS! 50%-80% Original gold bullion pricing ­ no adjustment made for increased gold pricing S D 309 Lakeshore Road East, Oakville ENN! 905-815-1220 ALEOO S S Change is difficult Continued from page 6 agencies is continuity of funding. This year we implemented multi-year funding which, as it is phased in, will provide up to three year assurances of funding for supported programs. This is a major improvement for our agencies, but requires things like outcome measurement to give us the confidence that goals are being met each year. Change is always hard to deal with. This year, after many years of funding the same agencies in the same proportion, the board and staff of UWO agreed we needed to begin to change to reflect the changing makeup and needs of Oakville. As a result, we have increased funding to a number of programs and are financially supporting six new programs in five agencies in line with the funding priorities. We believe the changes we are implementing will have a significant and ongoing impact in Oakville. Thank you for taking the time to read this letter. If you have any questions or wish to discuss this further, please contact me through the UWO office. GORDON ROSS CHAIR, UNITED WAY OF OAKVILLE BOARD OF DIRECTORS