Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland has apologized after she received a speeding ticket in Alberta on Tuesday.
“So, look, I did get a speeding ticket driving between Grand Prairie and Peace River. I was driving too fast and I won’t do it again,” said Freeland on Wednesday.
As first reported by The Counter Signal, Freeland was charged with speeding while driving a rental car from Grand Prairie to Peace River, Alberta. The Counter Signal reported that she was driving 142 km/h in a 100km/h zone while other reports mention her going a speed of 132 km/h.
The news comes shortly after Freeland boasted about not owning a car, instead relying on public transportation as a means to get around.
“I right now am an MP for downtown Toronto,” Freeland said. “A fact that still shocks my dad is, I don’t actually own a car … I’m like, I don’t know, 300 metres from the nearest subway. I walk. I take the subway. I make my kids walk and ride their bikes and take the subway. It’s actually healthier for our family. I can live that way.” said Freeland to reporters on a recent trip to P.E.I.
Freeland failed to mention in her comments that she regularly uses a taxpayer-funded chauffeur service to commute.
“The Deputy Prime Minister was pulled over for driving 132 km/h while traveling between Grande Prairie and Peace River,” said Katherine Cuplinskas, a spokesperson for Freeland. “She received a ticket for $273,”
Freeland was clocked at 142 kilometres per hour in an area where the speed limit was 100 kilometre per hour but it was later knocked down to 132.
The fine was $273, which according to Alberta highway traffic laws, would also come with a penalty of 4 demerit points. Freeland’s office has not commented on whether or not she received the demerit points.
“She has paid in full,” said her office, stating that she did not fight the ticket.Â
