RCMP charge Tesla driver for speeding and sleeping behind the wheel

Sep 17, 2020 | 8:52 AM

PONOKA, AB – A 20-year-old driver has been charged for speeding and sleeping while behind the wheel of a Tesla vehicle.

RCMP say back on July 9, at around 4:00 p.m., provincial Mounties received a complaint of a car speeding south on Highway 2 near Ponoka.

According to RCMP, the car appeared to be self-driving and was travelling over 140 km/h, with both front seats completely reclined and both occupants of the vehicle appearing to be asleep.

An Alberta RCMP Traffic Service member found the vehicle, identified as a 2019 Tesla Model S.

When the responding officer activated their own vehicle’s emergency lights, the Tesla “automatically began to accelerate”. The officer was able to get radar readings on the car, confirming that it had accelerated up to exactly 150 km/h.

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The Tesla was pulled over, and RCMP charged the driver, a 20-year-old from British Columbia, with speeding. The driver also received a 24-hour license suspension for fatigue.

“Although manufacturers of new vehicles have built in safeguards to prevent drivers from taking advantage of the new safety systems in vehicles, those systems are just that – supplemental safety systems,” said Superintendent Gary Graham of Alberta RCMP Traffic Services, in a release.

“They are not self-driving systems, they still come with the responsibility of driving.”

Following further investigation and consultation with Crown Counsel, a Criminal Code charge of Dangerous Driving was laid against the driver, who was served with a summons for court in December.

by Justin Goulet