B.C. Tesla driver ‘zoned out’ using illegal self-driving mode: police

Police are reminding motorists that just because your vehicle has an autonomous driving feature, that doesn’t make it legal to use in B.C.

Police in British Columbia are reminding electric vehicle owners that self-driving features are illegal on the province’s roadways after a woman was pulled over and fined for appearing to sleep behind the wheel.

The B.C. Highway Patrol says an officer spotted the Tesla driver with her eyes closed and her arms crossed while travelling eastbound on the Trans-Canada Highway during the morning rush hour on March 17.

“The driver appeared to be literally asleep at the wheel,” Cpl. Michael McLaughlin said in a news release Monday.

“The driver said that she had ‘zoned out’ but was fully alert with her hands on the steering wheel,” McLaughlin said, noting that it was raining at the time and road conditions were slippery. “In-car police video did not support the driver’s claim.”

The B.C. Highway Patrol declined to provide the video to CTV News, citing the driver’s privacy and presumption of innocence before the court.

“Don’t sleep and drive,” the agency said. “Just because you can do something, doesn’t mean you should.”

The driver, a 37-year-old woman from Metro Vancouver, was issued a $368 ticket for driving without due care and attention, along with an additional $138 fine for speeding, police said.

“It’s true that some electric vehicles have self-driving mode, but those systems are not legal to use in B.C.,” added McLaughlin.

“You need to be fully awake, alert, focused, and in control of your vehicle at all times.”

• READ ALSO: B.C. driver caught speeding in car ‘held together with duct tape and wishful thinking’: police