In Ontario, the Long Weekend Ended With Impounded Cars

There is a particular carelessness that settles over some drivers during a holiday weekend—the sense that the roads belong to them, that the rules are suggestions, and that the open highway is an invitation rather than a shared space. In Ontario this Thanksgiving, that carelessness met the quiet persistence of provincial police, and the result was a series of charges that serve as a reminder of what is at stake when speed outruns judgment.

Ontario Provincial Police laid three stunt driving charges near Mattawa over the Thanksgiving long weekend, all on Highway 17, following separate traffic enforcement stops . On Saturday, officers stopped a pickup truck traveling 150 kilometers per hour in a posted 90 zone; a 44-year-old resident of Petawawa was charged . On Monday, the final day of the holiday, officers charged two more drivers in a single day. A 39-year-old from Kanata was stopped after being recorded at 153 kilometers per hour while passing a police cruiser. An 18-year-old from Cornwall was stopped later that afternoon, traveling 140 kilometers per hour in the same 90 zone .

The penalties for stunt driving in Ontario are immediate and substantial. Each driver received a 30-day driver's license suspension and had their vehicle impounded for 14 days . If convicted, they face fines of at least $2,000, six demerit points, and a driving prohibition of up to one year . The province's stunt driving threshold on 400-series highways is 150 kilometers per hour, even in zones posted at 110, a rule that some drivers appear not to have fully absorbed .

The stops near Mattawa were part of a broader enforcement effort over the holiday weekend. In Ottawa, police charged a driver on Highway 417 who was clocked at 159 kilometers per hour just before 7 a.m. on Thanksgiving Monday . In Blind River, a traffic stop that began with a speeding observation uncovered stolen license plates, no insurance, and no valid driver's license; the 28-year-old driver faced multiple charges .

OPP officials used the incidents to issue a familiar but necessary reminder: excessive speed reduces a driver's ability to react to changing road conditions, increases stopping distances, and raises the risk of severe injury or death in a crash . The message is not new, but the holiday weekend's numbers suggest it bears repeating. The roads were busy. The police were watching. And for three drivers, the trip home ended with a license suspended, a vehicle impounded, and a court date waiting.

The images accompanying this article are AI-generated and intended for illustrative purposes only.

Sources: CTV News, CityNews Ottawa, My North Bay Now, Vancouver Island CTV