Ontario driver charged for driving too slow on Highway 401

Traffic on Highway 401 in Toronto on Monday April 6, 2020. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Frank Gunn

An Ontario driver has been charged for driving too slow on Highway 401.

Const. Kirk Papadopoulos said the driver was going 60 km in a 100 km/h zone on the major roadway.

The Toronto police officer flagged the incident in a Twitter post on Friday afternoon.

“Driving too slow on [a highway] can be dangerous due to increased risk of accidents, impaired traffic flow, raised chance of rearend collisions,” Papadopoulos said.

Ontario’s Highway Traffic Act defines “unnecessary slow driving” as a vehicle driven at such a slow rate of speed that it “impedes” or “blocks” the normal flow of traffic.

“[It’s] crucial to retain a safe, reasonable speed & use hazard lights when slower than flow of traffic,” Papadopoulos said.

The charge for unnecessary slow driving is no less than $150 and not more than $1,000, in addition to two demerit points, according to the Highway Traffic Act.