Kootenay seatbelt, distracted driving numbers largely unchanged: Highway Patrol

Drivers in the Kootenays showed little change in seatbelt use and distracted driving compared to last year’s March numbers, according to BC Highway Patrol.

According to data from March 2026, officers issued 57 seatbelt and restraint tickets in the month, compared with 47 during the same period in 2025

Tickets for distracted driving edged down slightly to 142 from 149.

Highway Patrol says the figures suggest overall driving behaviour in the region has remained relatively stable.

Across B.C., officers handed out 2,722 tickets for electronic device use while driving and 775 seatbelt violations in March 2026, compared with 2,738 and 821, respectively, in March 2025.

“When you consider staffing changes, different enforcement techniques, weather, and other factors, these numbers are essentially flat,” says Corporal Michael McLaughlin with BC Highway Patrol.

Elsewhere in the province, results varied.

Metro Vancouver and the South Coast saw a sharp increase in distracted driving tickets, while Northern B.C. recorded a drop in those violations but a rise in seatbelt infractions.

McLaughlin said distracted driving remains one of the leading causes of fatal crashes in the province, alongside speeding and impaired driving.

“Seatbelts are just such an easy way to save lives in collisions,” he said.

“As long as they continue to be problems, we will continue to educate through enforcement.”