Ottawa bylaw employee charged, fined for distracted driving

OttawaAn employee of Ottawa’s bylaw department was on the receiving end of a hefty ticket after Ontario Provincial Police spotted a driver using their mobile phone on the Queensway early Thursday afternoon.Driver seen talking on cellphone pulled over on Queensway Thursday afternoonCBC News · Posted: Sep 25, 2025 6:14 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours agoEast Region OPP posted this photo on X on Thursday. It shows a City of Ottawa bylaw and regulatory services department vehicle pulled over on the eastbound shoulder of Highway 417. The driver of the vehicle has been charged with distracted driving. (East Region OPP/X)An employee of Ottawa’s bylaw department was on the receiving end of a hefty ticket after Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) spotted a driver using their mobile phone on the Queensway early Thursday afternoon.In a social media post, East Region OPP said the driver was pulled over shortly before 1 p.m. “because they were using their cellphone while driving.”The driver was charged with distracted driving under the Highway Traffic Act and faces a $615 fine, plus three demerit points and a three-day driving suspension upon conviction, OPP said.A photo accompanying the post showed a white hatchback vehicle with distinctive stripes and a rooftop beacon pulled over on the eastbound shoulder of Highway 417 near Carling Avenue. OPP confirmed it was a City of Ottawa bylaw vehicle, and said the driver was in uniform at the time. The City of Ottawa would not confirm either of those details on Thursday.In a statement attributed to Roger Chapman, director of bylaw and regulatory services (BLRS), the city wrote: “All BLRS staff are required to comply with the provisions of the Highway Traffic Act (HTA) and obey all traffic laws. Employees are responsible for paying tickets issued to them under the HTA.”The city said it was unable to provide further details as the matter is under investigation.OPP removed the social media post on Thursday afternoon after receiving a complaint, an OPP spokesperson told CBC.”Distracted driving remains the number one cause of serious collisions and vehicle related deaths in Ontario,” OPP said in the original post.Distracted driving was responsible for 82 highway deaths in Ontario in 2024, according to OPP.