Warm winter credited for fewer accidents TERRACE DRIVERS can probably thank El Nino for a drop in the number of car accidents here this winter. Accident rates in the Ter- race area fell as.much as 43 per cent in the first two months of the year, in line with a similar province- wide trend, There were 147 injury claims reported to the local ICBC office in January and February of 1997. This year that number fell to just 89 —a 40 per cent drop. The number of collision claims are down too, from 505 in 1997 to 288 this year, another decrease of more than 40 per cent, In total, there were 925 claims reported in the first two months of this year, down 25 per cent overall. Terrace ICBC claims centre manager Dennis McKinney says a number of factors likely contributed to the drop in claim numbers, but weather probably tops the list. ; *‘The weather here this past winter has to have had an effect,’ be says of our relatively snow-frce season. “Animal impacts alone are a contributing factor.” McKinney points out that the lack of snow in the val- leys this winter made it easy for animals like moose to move around — which kept them off the highways. That ICBC OFFICIALS dealt with fewer damaged vehicles such as the one pictured above over the winter months. A warmer than usual winter which brought less snow and ice than normal tops the list of reasons for the drop in accidents. resulted in 14 fewer animals being hit on area roads, McKinney also adds that recent ICBC toad safety programs may have helped reduce the number of acci- dents. Two slight increases in claim numbers this winter were seen in glass damage and thefts. McKinney says weather may have been a factor in those as well, since less snow means more gravel ta crack windshields and better weather makes it easier for thieves to move around, But McKinney cautions that there are many vari- ables besides warm weather that could have caused the change in numbers. “‘More cars are also stolen when it’s really cold out be- cause people tend to leave them running,’? he says, So sometimes the numbers are hard to explain.”’ Province-wide, there have been 8,328 car accident in- juries claimed this year. That’s down from 9,756 in 1996. Damage claims have also dropped from 77,313 last year to 69,736 this year. Road fatalities are down too. So far this year 60 people have been killed on B.C. roads compared to 61 in 1997 and 79 in 1996. 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The location was identified laayeaRassa., photo radar spot before the limit was raised from 90kph. Be eee But before photo radar could be used with the new speed limit, a survey of average speeds reflecting that new limit was re- quired. And because a good sample of average speeds can’t be taken over the winter with different driving conditions, one was done just recently, said Pitts, ‘We found that people were going much faster than the limil. They had crept up again,”’ he said. That wasn’t the case last year when of- ficers noted that speeds had dropped when photo radar units were out enforcing the old 90kph limit. “We're finding we do have an impact but we have to keep reminding people,’’ said Pitts. "We'll be out to change things once we return to show the colours.,”? -. =. Photo radar officers are also awaiting ap- _ Proval to set up at more sites in the narth- west this year. 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