Link: http://www.680news.com/news/local/article.jsp?content=20080805_080220_8620

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By: Jaime Pulfer

Toronto - At least 5,000 charges were laid on the highways over the weekend, about a ticket every three minutes in the Toronto area.

OPP Sgt. Cam Woolley told 680News over 150 excessive speeders had their vehicles seized over the long weekend, including a driver from New York, who had passengers in the car. He was clocked at 227 kilometres an hour on Highway 407.

Woolley said that when the man was asked why he was driving so fast, he told the officer he had just eaten corn soup and had to use the washroom.

But, the street racing legislation, which went into effect over 10-months ago, has been getting a lot of credit.

The street racing legislation went into effect at the end of September and Woolley told 680News at least 80 people are alive because of it.

"If you can put this into perspective, that's 80 more people that are alive compared to the same time last year, so this isn't some little fluctuation," Woolley said.

He added that there's been a 40 per cent drop in fatal high speed crashes compared to the same time last year -- something he said he's never seen in his 30 years as an OPP officer.