Kingston Police report 1,515 collisions in first half of 2024

A Kingston Police Collisions Report released this week notes that most collisions occur when least expected and offers insight into what drivers can do to stay safer.

The Kingston Police Services Board received the Kingston Police Collision Report for the first half of the year, January 1 to June 30, 2024, at its meeting on Thursday, Sept. 19, 2024. Accident Support Services International Ltd. compiled and provided the report, and Chief of Police Scott Fraser spoke to it.

According to the report, the total number of collisions reported in Kingston during the first half of 2024 was 1,515 --- a six per cent increase over the same time last year, when 1,429 collisions occurred.

Notably, in the first half of 2024, the report indicates the top intersection for collisions was John Counter Boulevard at Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard, with 12 collisions involving 20 people. The intersection of Princess Street and Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard took the second spot, with 11 collisions involving 17 people. These were closely followed by John Counter Boulevard and Montreal Street, Centennial Drive and Taylor-Kidd Boulevard, and Bath Road at Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard, which had 10 collisions each.

Chief Fraser pointed out that if you look at the top 10 intersections, “It’s Sir John A. Macdonald. And then from [Highway] 401, if you just keep travelling [south], it's each intersection. So people travelling on Sir John A. need to be extra cautious.”

“Quarter to quarter… you'll see the top 10 intersections remain the top 10 intersections, and they just may differ in rank,” the chief noted. For example, Bath Road at Sir John A. Macdonald Boulevard took the top spot for the 2023 year, with 31 collisions.

“One of the biggest things [to take away from the ranking] is people should take extra precautions when you get to those locations,” said Fraser.

As to the causes of the collisions, he said, “Unfortunately, it's a little bit of everything, whether it's running a red light, or it's someone not paying attention and failing to stop for the car that stopped at the red light… It's the same in every community.”

He said collecting statistics about the intersections with the most collisions is also something useful for police to share with the City so they can consider it when working on infrastructure goals.

The report notes that police were on scene at 533 of the collisions (35 per cent) while the remaining 962 (63 per cent) were self-reported. Fraser pointed out that the collision reporting centre at Kingston Police headquarters is well used, so police don’t always need to be on scene.

“In fact, the province is upping the amount of damage where you must report a collision,” he said.

Currently, if the involved vehicles have over $2,000 combined damage, drivers must report the collision to police immediately to a Collision Reporting Centre. The chief didn’t specify how much the new minimum would be nor when that change was coming.

The report also looks at the people involved in the collisions, how they were driving, and what the weather conditions were at the time of the collision.

Drivers with improper licences were involved in 15 of the total incidents, while drivers with suspended licences were involved in nine, and breathalyzers were administered in just 12 of the incidents.

Fraser noted at the meeting and in his report that, contrary to what one might expect, 90 per cent of the collisions occurred in clear weather conditions, and 78 per cent occurred on dry roads.

“Most accidents occur in the middle of the day on a nice day. We always think it’s going to be in the winter when it's icy, but in miserable weather drivers pay attention to how they are driving. When it's nice out, they pay attention to a lot of other things,” he explained.

A total of 28 collision incidents involved pedestrians, three of which were fatal. Of those, 43 per cent were deemed “intersection-related.” Nine pedestrians were crossing and had the right of way, while eight were crossing without the right of way. Other incidents of pedestrians being hit occurred when they were walking on the roadway, getting out of vehicles, or on sidewalks. Normal pedestrian conditions were observed in 21 of the total incidents, while other various incidents included impaired pedestrians, inattention by a pedestrian, or “other.”

Fourteen of the collisions involved a driver who was under the influence of alcohol or drugs. Three “had been drinking,” four were deemed ability impaired by alcohol, and eight were ability impaired by alcohol with a blood concentration over 0.08 per cent. Two were operating a vehicle while impaired by cannabis.

The vast majority of collisions involving a driver under the influence of alcohol or drugs --- 71 per cent --- involved drivers in their late teens and early 20s.

The takeaway from the collision report, Fraser said, “Is it just gives people an opportunity [to review the top 10 intersections] and know that you can take some extra caution if this is a very bad intersection where there's maybe more incidents than in other locations.”

The Kingston Police Services Board meets regularly on the third Thursday of each month, beginning at 12 noon in the William Hackett Boardroom at Kingston Police Headquarters, 705 Division Street. More information on the board, including meeting agendas and videos of past meetings, is available on the Kingston Police website.