At peak times they weave dangerously back and forth between cars, drive at very high speeds, perform dangerous maneuvers and completely ignore the danger they pose to others: welcome to white lininga phenomenon that is becoming increasingly popular in the Greater Montreal area.
“We are aware of the phenomenon, people have recently reported incidents of this nature to us and the investigation is ongoing,” said Sergeant Camille Savoie, spokesman for the Sûreté du Québec.
Additionally, a vehicle containing three 18-year-old juveniles was seen zigzagging on the expressways at high speed on Highway 15 South in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville district of Montreal on Friday afternoon.
A few moments later, the driver is said to have had difficulty navigating the driveway to Rue de Salaberry and slid several meters before his vehicle crashed into trees in the middle of a residential area. The three occupants suffered serious injuries in the incident.
“This accident looks very much like white-lining,” said a police source who was not authorized to speak to the media.
So far, the investigation into the collision has not been able to determine whether or not it was a white liner incident.
The phenomenon of white lining is not new. This practice, very popular in the United States, has also appeared in the greater Montreal area in recent months.
This new “fashion” involves driving at full speed on roads – especially major highways – while behaving like a Formula 1 driver and committing dangerous overtaking maneuvers and speeding.
Most of the time, one of the car occupants films the scene to immortalize the moment.
Some of these videos can also be found on social networks, some accounts of which seem to promote this type of behavior.
“By publishing it, they encourage each other to keep going. Tougher penalties are needed to counteract the phenomenon,” responded a police officer from the Sûreté du Québec.
Speaking on condition of anonymity, other police officers lamented that more and more drivers seemed to enjoy mocking the authorities.
“They do it on purpose to commit crimes in front of us, knowing full well that we cannot prosecute them because it is too dangerous. And besides, they are filming us to broadcast this,” said an SPVM police officer.
In the SPVM area, police pursuits are extremely rare as they pose a threat to the safety of citizens. “In principle, in order to pursue a vehicle there must be an immediate threat to life. “This means that prosecutions almost never happen in Montreal,” summarized a Montreal police sergeant.