Tesla driver allegedly asleep at wheel while crossing North Shore bridge issued $368 ticket

A 21-year-old woman from the Lower Mainland has been issued a ticket for driving without proper care and attention after she was captured on video apparently asleep behind the wheel as she crossed the Ironworkers Memorial Bridge in a Tesla Thursday afternoon.

A passenger in a vehicle driving beside the woman’s car managed to film the apparently catnapping driver, which he later posted to Instagram.

The man, who goes under the Instagram handle @barneee750 said he was shocked to see someone apparently commuting over the busy bridge while asleep.

The North Vancouver RCMP later reviewed the video.

Officers spoke to the driver and issued her a $368 ticket for driving without due care and attention. She’ll also have six points added to her driver’s licence.

Const. Kelly McIntyre, spokeswoman for the North Vancouver RCMP, said police have limited information, apart from the brief video clip, about how the woman came to be asleep behind the wheel or whether anyone was in danger during the time the driver nodded off.

Tesla’s autopilot system uses cameras along with algorithms to detect nearby objects like other vehicles and cyclists to maintain a safe distance between the car and other vehicles. Another feature uses cameras to detect marked lines on the road to keep the vehicle within its lane.

Both, however, require active driver supervision and aren’t considered self-driving car features.

The message, says McIntyre, is “no matter what features your car has, you need to pay attention.”