Image: BC RCMP / One hundred police officers across the province were recently honored for their exemplary efforts to enforce distracted driving laws in 2022. But one constable from B.C. Highway Patrol in Chilliwack stands out among the crowd. Constable Troy Collins was honored for stopping 835 distracted drivers in 2022, the highest number attributed to a single officer in British Columbia for the year. He's pictured with Paula Pepin, who was involved in a head-on collision in 2013 involving a distracted driver. As September was distracted driving awareness month in BC, Pepin is advocating for awareness surrounding distracted driving. 

By Mike Vanden Bosch

Distracted driving

BC Highway Patrol officer in Chilliwack stops the highest number of distracted drivers in all of BC in 2022

Oct 23, 2023 | 8:36 AM

CHILLIWACK — One hundred police officers across the province were recently honored for their exemplary efforts to enforce distracted driving laws in 2022.

But one constable from BC Highway Patrol in Chilliwack stands out among the crowd. Constable Troy Collins of BC Highway Patrol – Chilliwack was honored for stopping 835 distracted drivers in 2022, the highest number attributed to a single officer in British Columbia for the year.

BC RCMP says distracted driving is a leading cause of fatal and serious injury motor vehicle collisions in British Columbia and is completely preventable. On average, distraction is a factor in 77 deaths each year on BC roadways.

One such incident highlights the necessity for enforcing distracted driving laws. On December 3, 2013, on the Lions Gate Bridge in North Vancouver, Paula Pepin and Etienne Morin were crossing the bridge on their way to work when an oncoming vehicle suddenly swerved into their lane, striking their vehicle head-on. Morin suffered a major concussion and Pepin, who was pregnant at the time, lost her unborn child. A subsequent police investigation revealed distracted driving by the other driver to be a contributing factor to the crash.

As September was distracted driving awareness month in BC, Pepin and Morin are advocating for awareness surrounding distracted driving. Pepin and Morin are hopeful that by sharing their story, they can raise awareness, make motorists take a closer look at their own driving habits and potentially avoid the type of catastrophic crash that they experienced.

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Collectively, the top 100 police officers in BC wrote a combined total of 16,787 violation tickets for distracted driving in 2022, with the top 10 officers writing 4,518 distracted driving tickets alone. The top 10 were awarded with a framed certificate of recognition signed by both the CEO of ICBC and the Chief Superintendent of BC Highway Patrol. All 100 officers also received a custom-made coin recognizing their efforts in enforcing distracted driving laws in 2022.

Constable Troy Collins of BC Highway Patrol – Chilliwack recently met with Pepin to receive his framed certificate for stopping 835 distracted drivers in 2022.