1,000 stunt driving charges and counting as cops prep for summer uptick in Mississauga, Brampton

Police have laid more than 1,000 stunt driving charges so far this year in Mississauga and Brampton and that number is expected to rise dramatically now that summer is here.

In an ongoing effort to clamp down on the illegal and dangerous driving behaviour that has become a growing concern in recent years, Peel Regional Police are again taking to social media to try dissuade potential offenders from putting their own lives and those of others at serious risk by racing and driving aggressively and far too fast on Peel roads.

The public awareness campaign is meant to complement ramped-up enforcement efforts such as the annual Project ERASE (Eliminating Racing Activities on Streets Everywhere) initiative in which police in Peel and across the GTA combine forces to crack down on dangerous driving between May and October.

In a short video posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday, Peel Const. Tyler Bell-Morena said stunt drivers, or street racers, tend to increase their dangerous activity once summer arrives.

“It’s a problem that exists year-round,” he said, pointing to the more than 1,000 stunt driving charges already laid in 2024. Upwards of 4,000 speeding tickets have been doled out across Peel in the same period.

“As the summer months approach, we notice a trend, especially at nighttime, of an increase in car meets and street racing activities across the region,” Bell-Morena continued, adding “that means more high-speed collisions and, sadly, more road fatalities. And we’ve seen far too many of those this year already.”

Videos

Accompanying the video warning from police are the words, “Street racing can have tragic outcomes and will not be tolerated. If you see this behaviour, report it.”

Peel Regional Police Const. Tyler Bell-Morena said police are prepared for an increase in stunt driving during the summer.

Bell-Morena added police will not go easy on those they pull over for street racing, stunt driving and other forms of dangerous and aggressive behaviour on the roads.

For those caught, “you will be charged with every applicable offence possible,” he cautioned, noting penalties include driver’s licence suspension, vehicle impoundment, “thousands and thousands of dollars in fines” and the subsequent insurance ramifications.

“But that’s still not the worst penalty,” the Peel constable continued. “We could show up to your door in the middle of the night to tell your loved ones that you’ve been seriously injured or killed in a completely preventable collision; or worse, a completely innocent member of the public that’s caught in the crossfire of your reckless, dangerous driving (is injured or killed).”

Bell-Morena said he understands the appeal, to some, of racing a car, but “there are safer ways to do it that don’t involve putting everybody else on our roadways in danger.”

Stunt driving in Ontario is defined as travelling at:

• 50 km/h or more over the speed limit where the posted limit is above 80 km/h
• 40 km/h or more over where the limit is 80 km/h or less
• a speed of 150 km/h or more on any road or highway

Illegal street racing is characterized by two or more cars taking part in speed competitions, whether they take place on busy roads or in more isolated parts of town such as shopping mall parking lots late at night.

Typically, groups of street racers show up in large numbers to race in industrial areas in Peel and across the GTA late Friday and Saturday nights from about May through the end of October, police have said.