Are you one of the Seven Dwarfs?.....Sleepy?

So it is Monday morning, the beginning of a new work week. You have had a great weekend with friends and family, far too much fun and not enough sleep.  The day ahead is full of meetings and you are exhausted.  But you think you will be fine, you have driven to work like this before, it is not a big deal.

YOU ARE WRONG.

Driving requires your full attention, you must be alert at all times, as if someones life depends on it. Well it does.  The 60 kilometer average commute to Toronto from the suburbs takes over an hour, this is not accounting for any collisions or traffic delays that may occur.  Rush hour traffic is the bane of our existence. As you sit there stuck behind a vehicle, and you haven't moved in 30 seconds or you are at a traffic light and have been sitting still for a minute. Your eyes start to get heavy, you think that you can shut them for a few seconds, it's not a big deal.

YOU ARE WRONG.

Everyone deals with schedules that are far too busy, and there are not enough hours in the day to get things done.  Shopping, taking the kids to extracurricular activities appointments and any of 100 other things.  So you stay up later getting that work done, sacrificing your sleep trying to free up time for other things you need to do.  You will just get more sleep on the weekend, make up for the sleep you have missed, it's not a big deal.

YOU ARE WRONG.

Adults require 7-9 hours of sleep per night. Studies have shown that lack of sleep can lead to serious health issues and put your safety and the safety of individuals around you at risk. Lack of sleep is also associated with an increased risk of motor vehicle collisions and other serious health concerns.

I ask you, do you want to be responsible for the injury or death of a person?

You are probably thinking that it won't happen to you.

YOU ARE WRONG.

A person who suffers a microsleep episode is usually unaware of it, or believes that they just weren't paying attention.  

A microsleep is an episode of sleep which may last for a fraction of a second or up to thirty seconds.

Microsleeps can be caused by a number of things and sleep deprivation is one of them. Microsleep episodes can be very dangerous when they occur while operating a vehicle. Assume a vehicle is travelling on a highway at 100 km/h (27.7 meters per second) and an individual suffers an episode that lasts 30 seconds, it would be the equivalent of driving a vehicle blindfolded for 831 meters.

Is that a chance you want to take?

If you find yourself in a situation where you are exhausted and are getting drowsy while operating a vehicle, find a safe place to stop so you can take a nap. Let your family know that you are stopping and will be late so they are not concerned for your well being.

The safest choice would be to find a hotel or motel and stay the night.

Be a responsible road user, help yourself to be a safer, more productive person and do your part to keep everyone safe.



CS~

What is your life worth!!!!

Dispatcher: Police, Fire or Ambulance?

Caller: Send everything!!!!!.....

Dispatcher: What is your emergency?

Caller: A car has crashed, it was going the wrong way!!!! People are injured. It looks really bad!!!! Please hurry!!!!

This is the type of call emergency personnel don't want to answer, but it is the type of call that is received all too often. The outcome can be a life altering or life ending event. Alcohol is usually a factor in these types of collisions. The trauma that families of victims and victims themselves face when they or someone they know have been involved is tremendous. In Ontario .080 mgs of alcohol in 100 ml of blood, is the point at which an individual may be charged with a drinking and driving offence. Physical impairment can begin even lower, as a result a charge of impaired operation of a motor vehicle may be laid, if evidence of an offence exists.
The cost for an impaired driving defence is approximately $18,000 (not including taxes).

The total social cost for a fatality in Ontario is approximately $13.7 million.

I ask you, what is your life worth?

Drinking and driving is a choice. The next time you go out, make the right choice, don't drink and drive. Arrange for a designated driver, taxi or use public transit. If you see someone operating a vehicle and believe they are impaired call 911. As a road using community we can work together to put an end to impaired driving. CS~

Traffic safety and what it means to the Toronto Police Service

Traffic safety is a priority for the Toronto Police Service.  Traffic Services has been mandated to investigate serious personal injury and fatal collisions in the city of Toronto.  

On Monday December 10, 2012 the Toronto Police Service answered 8 calls in 43 minutes beginning at 6:41 am and ending at 7:24 am, for pedestrian struck collisions.  Certain events that have occurred since these collisions have inspired me to write this Blog.

During this time period a number of contributing factors became evident and as a result this information was relayed via Twitter to the media and general public in order to promote pedestrian safety. We are offering advice to people on situations that we are dealing with and our experience on what we encounter.

The factors were as follows:

1) Poor lighting conditions (pre-dawn hours)

2) Driver error

3) Wet roads

4) Rain 

5) Pedestrians wearing clothing that in the dark made them hard, if not impossible, for drivers to see

These factors resulted in collisions.  Statements taken from drivers at the scene as well information received by the call takers at the communications center made clear mention of two common factors. The pedestrians were wearing dark clothing and the drivers did not see them.  

We are telling the public what the drivers who were involved have stated as fact.  They did not see the pedestrians. It is hard to believe that anyone operating a motor vehicle would intentionally strike a pedestrian.  A number of the pedestrians in fact did nothing wrong and the drivers were charged. There are no regulations in law that direct a person as to what they may or may not wear, collision facts speak for themselves and the Toronto Police Service will not tell a person what to wear. 

Vehicles, whether they are bicycles, cars, or trucks, are required by the Highway Traffic Act to have reflectors, horns, lighting, and other safety equipment in order to make themselves visible to other road users and to protect the operators.  Pedestrians have no such regulation and as a result are vulnerable road users.  In the perfect world there would be no collisions. 

I have spoken to cyclists today and they have also voiced concern over individuals using Martin Goodman Trail whether they were pedestrians, runners or cyclists dressed in dark clothing and while travelling poorly lit sections of the trail, almost striking these individuals.

In reality collisions are a caused occurrence and are a direct result of someone making an error.

I haven't missed a winter since I was born 41 years ago.  We always buy clothing that protects us from the elements.  But when do we use our snow boots...... when it snows, when do we use our gloves, hat, scarf, and winter jacket with the hood....... when it gets really cold.  Our environment changes rapidly during the fall and winter, our habits however don't, we continue to cross the roadways like it is a summer day while wearing our winter gear.

On November 30, 2012, the GTA recorded its first significant snowfall. Drivers who haven't driven in the snow for almost two years were literally stopped in their tracks. 

I ask the road using community as a whole to be cautious. 

Drivers, slow down, take a second look and proceed only when it is safe to do so.

Pedestrians, be aware of your surroundings and do what we were taught when we were children: stop, look, listen and think before you cross the roadways. Wear an article of clothing that would make you more conspicuous to other road users. 

Cyclists, obey all traffic laws and help protect yourself. 

One life lost or injured is one too many. 

Do your part to protect yourself.

CS~

2012 Shorty Awards

Well, the Shorty Awards are upon us once again. I love these awards as they really point towards the best that Twitter has to offer.

Last year, @TrafficServices was a finalist for the Nokia Connecting People category which was won by the amazing Shannon Miller. For me, just to be nominated was incredible...to be a finalist, that was more than I could have imagined.

This year, @TrafficServices has been nominated again, this time in the category, #LifeSavingHero presented by The Weather Channel. WOW!! Nominated again. I give a huge thanks for the nomination. But, me...a life saving hero? Not a chance.

You see, my job with this account is to communicate traffic safety and raise the awareness of the importance of traffic safety in our everyday lives. I sit at a computer for the most part and share information through social media to do that. I type, watch videos, read articles, interpret research and pass the info I see along. Not really a tough job and the biggest risk I face are paper cuts, headaches and vision problems. I go to community meetings and share my passion for traffic safety and try to get people to buy into the importance that traffic safety plays in the lives of each and everyone of us.

But call me a life saving hero? I can't in good conscience live up to that moniker. Here's why.
Looking at my industry of policing, there are men and women everyday who respond to the call for service by going places that they know are dangerous. They deal with people they know wish to do them harm. They investigate the worst that society has to offer and they are willing each and every time the walk out the door to sacrifice themselves to protect you and your family. Men and women who mine the Internet for pedophile's to save victims and prevent re-victimization.

They are life saving heroes.

When I think about life saving heroes, I have to also look at our military service men and women who have pledged their lives to protect us. Who walk into the theatre of battle to stand up for what is right, protect those that cannot protect themselves and to ensure we sleep well and safe at night. The bomb techs and bio-techs that inspect and neutralize bombs and hazardous substances meant to terrorize plague.

They are life saving heroes.

Life saving heroes can be found in hospitals and universities. Doctors that treat the critically injured. Stand for hours with their hands and minds inside bodies to repair damage done through trauma and disease. Researchers that are finding treatments and working towards cures that improve, extend and yes, save our lives.

They are life saving heroes.

Volunteers that at a moments notice, drop everything they are doing, leave their jobs and families behind to work in areas that are devastated by famine, natural disasters, man-made disasters and lands that are controlled to the point the poorest and most needy face death because they can't get water and food.

They are life saving heroes.

Pilots who land damaged planes with hundreds of people on board who are just trying to get back to their loved ones.

They are life saving heroes.

A cop that uses social media as pretty much the only part of his job? Nope...not a life saving hero, but incredibly grateful for what I get to do and humbled by your thoughts.

Like I said in the beginning, I love the Shorty Awards and I will definitely be casting my nominations for the people that I think are the best of the best and I hope you all do the same!  Find the awesome people in your social world and let them be seen for what they do!

This is the New Sheriff

So...a few people have asked who it is that will be taking over the accounts?
Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, or this blog and the next generation of social media that the Toronto Police choose to use...or more correctly, the ones that you tell us by your presence, which ones we should use.

There really was only one logical choice all along.  He was my partner for more than a year, so I knew he had the understanding of not only what I was doing on the social streams, but he gets how traffic works.  Those two were important.  He's made many suggestions for what I should say and post.  (Usually when I wanted to say something really bold.  He would talk me off the ledge and make a much better suggestions).

Everyone in the media is accustomed to him so it won't be a shock or a learning curve for you either.

Ladies and gentlemen please give a really warm welcome to Police Constable Hugh Smith!!

Surprise!!! Why go looking for someone when the best is right beside you.

Hugh will have some help though.  With the training that has been happening within the Toronto Police Service, Traffic Services has some people trained in the use of the tools.  More Tweeters are coming and help with this blog and the fan page are just around the corner.

But for now...please say "Hi" and give Hugh a BIG warm welcome...(I've changed the settings so he will get everyone of these so let him know you are looking forward to his tweets).   I'm off for a week (my therapy session for letting this go) so he won't be able to yell at me. LOL!!

There will be an adjustment period.  Hugh will do a great job.  Give him a little time and a little patience.

So, I'm moving full time to the @TorontoPolice account on Twitter and the Facebook Fan page there as well.

I will be more active on my personal account, but there still wont be anything Toronto Police related. Some traffic safety information and general police info will get in there but it's by no means a police account.

In closing...Thanks for the memories!

There's a New Sheriff in Town

How do I start this post...I knew this day would come.  In fact, I've been planing it out for the last few months. 


"And now, the end is near, 
And so I face the final curtain.
My friends, I'll say it clear; I'll state my case of which I'm certain."


On January 15, 2009 at 12:33pm I activated my first Traffic Services social media platform; Twitter account @TrafficServices.  After that, I created pages, groups, profiles, channels, identities and this blog.


The reason?  To "Reduce collisions, injuries and death in Toronto".  I was trying to raise the awareness of traffic safety issues that could lead to better respect for road users with each other.  I was hoping that the information I could share would help our Toronto road users understand each other's perspective a little better. I wanted the public to be more aware of the laws, enforcement practices, decisions that would make each individual road user safer.


So a few thousand tweets, some videos, posts, updates, links, later...I am at the final curtain. (There has always been a music tone to my interactions...I'm not going to stop now!)


I have pushed a simple statement everywhere I could, "Road safety is every one's responsibility...and it starts with you."  And while I've pushed that, an incredible thing happened.  You pulled it in, shared it, pushed questions back and we formed some great relationships through all this social media 'stuff'.


I can honestly say, I've learned more from you than you learned from me!


Through it all, you built a "traffic brand".  Some of you know I  left Traffic Services a few months back to work out of the Toronto Police Headquarters Unit of Corporate Communications, but I have continued to populate the Traffic Services information streams.


I figured when the day came I would be leaving traffic, I would just change the name on my accounts and take them with me.  But, after seeing what you have done and how you have interacted and talked about traffic, shared our safety principals, I couldn't just take that away.  These are all your accounts...not mine.


"Regrets? I've had a few,
But then again, too few to mention.
I did what I had to do
And saw it through without exemption. "


When I made mistakes you forgave me.  When I got too busy with all my other duties, you were patient.


So, in return for your loyalty and dedication, I will leave you in great hands! 


A replacement has been identified and trained.  My replacement has been told about many of you and how important you are to what has been created.  I could never turn over the passwords over to just anyone...which is in part why it took a few months for this day to officially come.  It had to be the right person.


In a couple of days, you will all know, but for now, just know, you will be in great hands.


I have to thank a few people and I do this at the risk of not thanking everyone that should be mentioned.  Please don't be offended if you aren't thanked.  Know that you are all thought very highly of and my replacement has a list of key people and organizations that have helped so much.


@TVGurl - What can I say to the person who started it all?  I am in your debt for what you did for me!
@AmberMac - Hey Coach!! Your patience was incredible and your teachings so valuable.
@KrisReyes - All the key people to tied me into launched my understanding of the "government" end of this.
@Unmarketing - Your friendly slaps upside my head when you saw what others didn't were very appreciated.
@DeputySloly - You planted the seed to try new things, be courageous and to take the Toronto Police Service where it had never been.
@ChristaMMiller / @Cops2Point0 - The first law enforcement resource I found.  Your direction helped so much.
@808Cop_Retired - You sir are class...pure class! 
@GaryV - Thanks for your time in Toronto.  It's not over! The best is yet to come and the standing offer is always there, so let me know and we'll meet at our usual location ;)
@MrsMeaghanGray - Thanks for your guidance, level minded approach and understanding to learn all about this. By the way, "I've been thinking about trying something" No, seriously, I am...not kidding. See you after my holidays, we'll talk!


Every boss and supervisor that I have worked for and with over the last three years.  Huge thanks!!


Every person that took the time to say 'Hi', ask a question, point out some great information, like a post, favourite a video, share...There would be nothing without all of you - THANK YOU ALL!


Most importantly...@CarrieBurrows and the "3Bs".  You put up with so much.  You let me run with this and never complained about the trips away, the late night computer glow, the phone calls or the interviews.  I will never be able to return to you everything you sacrificed...but it's going to be great trying!!

"For what is a man what has he got

If not himself then he has not
To say the things he truly feels
And not the words of one who kneels
The record shows I took the blows
And did it..."
YOUR WAY!!

"THERE'S A NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN"

Watch for the introduction of the new face coming soon!!

Oh, by the way...this isn't the end, I'm just moving over fully to the Toronto Police streams.

Born to Ride....Victoriously

Well, I figure I better continue about day 3 and 4 at the Great Lakes Police Motorcycle Competition to follow up the last blog post.

Day 3 was more of the basics.

Look and steer where you want to go.  I still found myself every once and a while looking at the obstacles that I was trying to avoid and sure enough I would hit them. 

When riding a motorcycle or a bicycle, driving a car or even just while walking, you need to look where you want to go.  In my time a s a police officer working traffic I used to be amazed when I would roll up on a collision scene where a single motor vehicle hit a pole or a tree or even a parked car.  To the right or left of the collision scene would be wide open space, but the vehicle would hit the only object around.

The reason is pretty obvious.  The operator was looking directly at the object even though that is what they were trying to avoid.  In some ways, this is natural.  The object represents the threat and therefore we fixate on it.  Turn your eyes to the open space and steer towards the space...not the object.

When you walk through a door way, you don't look at the jams on each side...you look and walk through the open space.

Back to the training seminar....When I would use the proper riding principals, brake, steer, accelerate, shift gears, look, use proper seating position all to their optimum I never had a problem.

By the end of day three, I was feeling confident and ready to compete the next day!

Day 4.

Fantastic!!! I went into the competition hoping to be competitive and ride to the best of my ability.  I gave up a few years ago when I left the motor unit of ever challenging for top riding honours.

Looking at the cone...guess what I hit

I took all the basics and put them together at the right time to be competitive.  If it wasn't for using the basics and reminding myself, "Do the simple things right", I might have had a bad day, but because I focused on the basics, I actually came off looking like I knew what I was doing.

Most importantly, the team of five Toronto Police Officer that attended the event all concentrated on the basics and we won the Team Competition.  Here is the break down of it all.

For the published version of the following article, click here.
(From the Toronto Police Web Story)

Born to Ride...Victoriously
Motorcycle riding is a skill you never lose – just as long as you’re up to speed with the latest training techniques.


The Toronto Police Service proved just that, as their five-member team, all of whom no longer perform regular bike duties, captured the individual and team titles at the recent Great Lakes Police Motorcycle Training Seminar in Cambridge, Ontario.

A total of 70 riders, from police services across the continent, took part in the four-day event designed to challenge officers on various theoretical and practical information and to improve their riding skills.

The training courses mirror real-life events and obstacles that police motorcycle officers could be faced with on the job.

For the second time in the event’s 13-year history, S/Sgt Andy Norrie won the individual award. He was also second in the challenge ride, third in the slow ride and fourth in the smart-ride competitions.

“I am pleased to achieve an individual award, but I am more thrilled that the TPS contingent won first place in the team event,” he said.

“This achievement continues to demonstrate that the TPS is a world leader in policing and the vital role that teamwork plays in our success.”

The rest of the team was made up of Sgts. Tim Burrows and Don White, Const. Pekka Jokiniemi and Auxiliary officer Mark Webber.

Jokiniemi, who works out of the Transit Patrol Unit, won the expert division non-fairing skills competition while Burrows came out on top in the challenge and partner-ride events. He also came in second in the last rider standing contest and fourth and fifth in smart and slow-ride competitions.

White finished fourth in the challenge ride and fifth in the fairing skills (expert division) competition.

For a complete run down of how all the competitors did, click this link


For more on the event there are some great YouTube vids...use 2011 GLPMTS or GLPMTS as your search term.