School buses and other traffic on local highways have raised the call for safety with the High Prairie and Big Lakes County Traffic Safety Coalition.

Richard Froese
South Peace News

Steps to reduce injuries and deaths are the top priority for the newly-formed High Prairie and Big Lakes County Traffic Safety Coalition.
“We are all about traffic safety and preventing collisions, injuries and deaths,” says co-chair Harry Davis, director of transportation for High Prairie School Division.
“We want to roll out important campaigns starting in the fall.”
He shares the role with HPSD safety officer Michael Bourguignon, a retired RCMP officer.
“We want people to change their driving habits to be safe,” he says.
“If they don’t learn through education, then we’ll use enforcement,” he adds.
The local effort is one of about 70 in the province initiated by Alberta Transportation.
“One of the most successful methods to assist communities with reducing traffic fatalities is to develop traffic safety coalitions,” says Gordon Ellert, regional traffic consult under contract with Alberta Transportation.
“Driver attitude, behaviour, and aggressive driving are major factors in more than 85 per cent of traffic collisions and fatalities.”
Impaired and distracted driving, speed and unsafe driving and intersections are the four main causes of collisions on highways.
Locally, the group has identified five areas of focus:
1. Distracted driving;
2. Speeding and impaired driving;
3. Back to school safety and young drivers;
4. Intersections; and
5. Off-highway vehicles.
High Prairie RCMP is one of many partner agencies.
“Traffic concerns don’t belong just to the police, but to partner agencies and residents of the community,” Interim Staff Sgt. John Respet says.
“It’s a great collaboration of agencies and will promote education and awareness.”
Other members of the coalition represent the Town of High Prairie enforcement services and fire department, Big Lakes County and its fire departments, Alberta Health Services, the Alberta Brain Injury Network, and Big Lakes Family and Community Support Services.