Woman spotted sleeping at wheel of Tesla on Highway 1 near North Vancouver
Driver issued $368 ticket for inattentive driving after witnesses recorded video on August 11; officer warns Autopilot does not exempt drivers from full focus.
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A 45-year-old Maple Ridge woman was issued a $368 fine for driving without due care and attention after two witnesses spotted her appearing to sleep at the wheel of her Tesla Model Y on Highway 1 near Mountain Highway in North Vancouver on August 11 just before 3:30 p.m.
The witnesses, traveling in the same vehicle, recorded video from the passenger seat and provided their description to B.C. Highway Patrol. Officers tracked down the registered owner at her home in Maple Ridge and issued the ticket.
Sergeant Michael McLaughlin of B.C. Highway Patrol said in a statement that officers will not "debate the merits of self-driving technology with sleeping drivers." He emphasized that driver inattention is a major factor in serious and deadly collisions.
"You must be completely focused and alert when you're behind the wheel of any motor vehicle in B.C.," McLaughlin said.
The source material does not specify whether the vehicle was operating on Autopilot or another autonomous feature at the time, or whether any passengers were in the vehicle. The case marks the second documented incident in recent months of a Tesla driver found apparently asleep at the wheel. As HighOnCity reported in July, a driver was spotted passed out on the Canadian Rockies highway.
The facts
What fine did the driver receive?
$368 for driving without due care and attention.
When and where was the incident on Highway 1?
August 11, just before 3:30 p.m., on Highway 1 near Mountain Highway in North Vancouver.
How was the driver identified?
Two witnesses recorded video from their vehicle and provided their description to B.C. Highway Patrol, who tracked down the registered owner at her home in Maple Ridge.
