‘Completely wrong’: BC Highway Patrol corrects online misinformation amplified by AI about school zones

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — BC Highway Patrol is informing the public that online rumours about changes to school zones and other highway laws are misinformation amplified by AI. 

Corporal Michael McLaughlin of the BC Highway Patrol said several “disreputable websites” are falsely claiming all Canadian school zones will be in effect 24 hours a day, seven days a week starting on July 1st.

“These websites are completely wrong and social media and AI are amplifying the misinformation,” said McLaughlin. 

According to Section 147 of the BC Motor Vehicle Act, anyone driving a vehicle on a regular school day and where a 30 km/h speed limit sign is displayed must not exceed that limit between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m.

BC Highway Patrol has several recommendations when the public encounters traffic-related content on the internet, such as being skeptical of any information not coming from the provincial government.

The service said traffic laws are enacted on the provincial level and require cooperation between the federal, provincial and municipal levels of government. 

Other recommendations include considering the timing of the information, as big changes announced on short notice and without reason are “a red flag for savvy internet users.”

The misinformation can relate to all kinds of traffic law changes, including advanced driver systems for all vehicles, tougher distracted driving penalties, impaired driving law updates and changes to pedestrian zones. 

“These are complicated issues, and bunching them all together should raise red flags,” said McLaughlin.

BC Highway Patrol concludes by referring people with questions or concerns about updates to traffic law to the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia (ICBC), the BC Ministry of Transportation and Transit, or a provincial counterpart.