The new year brings new, stricter fines for a handful of Motor Vehicle Act offences.
Fines have doubled to $280 for distracted driving charges, and passing a school bus with flashing lights now carries a $480 penalty.
The demerits for each offence have increased as well. Distracted driving leads to five demerit points, and passing a school bus with flashing lights will cost six points.
The owner of vehicles found to have passed school buses with flashing lights can also now be prosecuted unless the owner can establish someone else was driving the vehicle.
The Move Over, Slow Down provision, requiring drivers to slow down and change lanes when emergency vehicles are pulled over with their lights flashing, now extends to tow trucks and highway maintenance vehicles.
The maximum speed under the law has also been set at half the posted speed limit.
Police officers are also now able to impose zero-tolerance provisions on novice drivers following field sobriety tests.
The changes to the MVA came into effect January 1.
