Traffic fatalities on Vancouver Island dropped last year, say police. The number of deaths on Island roads fell from 54 in 2007 to 46 in 2008, said Cpl. Darren Lagan, spokesman for Island District RCMP in Victoria.
Lagan said drinking and driving, and failure to wear seatbelts, were significant factors in traffic fatalities. More than a third of those who died in crashes were not wearing a seatbelt, and almost half of collisions involved alcohol- or drug-impaired drivers.
Excessive speed was a factor in eight crashes.
