Photo: SriMesh, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons
In Saskatchewan, stunting, racing or driving 50 km/h or more over the limit gets the vehicle you are driving impounded for 30 days, even if you do not own it. Learner and novice drivers may not use any phone at all, hands-free included, and a second device ticket within 12 months means a 7-day impoundment. This guide covers sections 3.1 and 3.2 of the SGI Driver’s Handbook and shows how one ticket affects your graduated licence and your insurance.
Key facts
- Where no limit is posted, the speed limit is 80 km/h.
- Pass stopped emergency vehicles, tow trucks with lights flashing, and highway equipment with lights flashing at no more than 60 km/h.
- Speeding fines triple when passing workers in a work zone.
- 30-day impoundment for stunting, racing, going 50 km/h or more over, or going double the posted limit or more.
- GDL drivers (learner, Novice 1, Novice 2) cannot use hand-held or hands-free phones.
- Any conviction puts a new driver into SGI’s GDL Improvement program, and a Novice 2 driver restarts the 12-month incident-free period.
Speed limits in Saskatchewan
- On most provincial highways and in urban areas, limits are posted. With no sign, the limit is 80 km/h.
- A town or city’s limit signs at its entrances apply everywhere inside its boundaries unless another limit is posted.
- The limit is the fastest you may go in ideal conditions. You must slow down for weather, traffic and animals on or near the road.
- Driving too slowly can also be hazardous. Do not block traffic unless you have taken proper safety precautions.
Special speed zones
| Situation | Rule |
|---|---|
| Passing a tow truck, emergency vehicle or Ministry of Highways equipment with lights flashing | Maximum 60 km/h |
| Work zones | No faster than the posted speed through the zone, and 60 km/h or less when passing a worker, flag person or occupied equipment. Some cities apply work zone limits through the entire construction area by bylaw. Fines triple when passing workers or occupied equipment. Workers include anyone within 3 km of a traffic control person, survey crew or highway workers sign |
| School zones | Set by each city or town’s bylaws, so watch for signs. Slow down near schools even without signs |
| Photo radar | Used in some work zones, school zones and high-risk locations. The ticket goes to the registered owner |
More on the 60 km/h rule: slow down, move over.
What counts as stunting in Saskatchewan?
SGI lists these as actions that can lead to a ticket, licence suspension and impoundment:
- racing side by side with another vehicle while breaking the speed limit
- chasing another vehicle
- speeding in and out of lanes to pass unsafely
- trying to lift some or all tires off the road (including wheelies on a motorcycle)
- trying to make a vehicle spin or circle
- driving while not sitting in the driver’s seat
- driving to stop another vehicle from passing
- stopping or slowing down to interfere with another vehicle
It is also illegal for you or any passenger to perform stunts or other activities that distract, startle or interfere with other road users, and to make loud, unnecessary noise with a vehicle.
Saskatchewan vehicle impoundments for speeding and stunting
| Offence | Impoundment |
|---|---|
| Stunting | 30 days, each offence |
| Excessive speeding: 50 km/h or more over the limit | 30 days, each offence |
| Excessive speeding: double the posted limit or more | 30 days, each offence |
| Contest of speed or race with other vehicles | 30 days, each offence |
| Race, contest or stunt on a bet or wager | 30 days, each offence |
| Failing to stop for a peace officer | 7 days, each offence |
| Driving while suspended or without a valid licence | 30 days; 60 days for a second time in two years |
| Any Criminal Code offence that is also an offence under The Traffic Safety Act | 30 days, each offence |
| Driving an unregistered vehicle, with a conviction in the previous 12 months | 7 days |
| A device ticket or a “driving without due care or reasonable consideration” ticket within 12 months of a conviction for either | 7 days |
| Second time driving as a learner without a supervisor within 12 months | 3 days |
The vehicle is impounded even if you are not the owner. The owner pays all towing and storage costs, and can recover that money from the driver. Driving the family car to a race costs your parents too.
Double the limit matters on slow roads. At 30 km/h in a school zone, 60 km/h is double. At 50 km/h, 100 km/h is double and also 50 over.
Distracted driving rules in Saskatchewan
Phones and devices
- Holding, viewing or manipulating a hand-held phone or mobile device while driving is illegal for every driver.
- GDL drivers (learner, Novice 1 and Novice 2) cannot use any phone, hand-held or hands-free.
- Experienced drivers (not in GDL) may use hands-free phones that are voice-activated or one-touch and mounted on the dash, visor or a cradle, plus Bluetooth and built-in systems.
- Every driver, new or experienced, may call 9-1-1 while driving, or make a call while parked at the side of the road.
- SGI’s tips: put your phone in the back seat, switch it off or use airplane mode. Don’t use a phone while refuelling.
Other distractions
SGI names passengers, things outside the vehicle, looking for something in the car, adjusting the radio, climate or controls, smoking, and eating or drinking as common distractions. Over 2020 to 2024, distracted driving caused an average of 2,977 collisions a year in Saskatchewan, with 717 injuries and 13 deaths.
Distracted driving fines
Saskatchewan’s penalties set from 1 February 2020 are:
| Offence | Ticket | Other penalty |
|---|---|---|
| First | $580 | 4 demerits |
| Second within a year of the first conviction | $1,400 | 4 more demerits and an immediate 7-day vehicle seizure |
| Third within a year of the first conviction | $2,100 | 4 more demerits and another 7-day seizure |
The province said towing and impound fees for a seizure would be about $400 or more. Check the current amounts with SGI before relying on these figures.
Compare other provinces in distracted driving penalties across Canada.
What one ticket does to a new Saskatchewan driver
GDL Improvement program
Any driver in a GDL stage who is at fault in a collision, convicted or suspended goes into the GDL Improvement program:
- First incident rated 2 points or fewer: a warning letter.
- First incident rated 3 to 6 points: a Traffic Safety Education session.
- Each later incident, in order: Defensive Driving course, Driver Improvement training, then 30-day, 90-day and 180-day suspensions, then an interview and further action.
SGI publishes the points assigned to each offence on its new driver improvement page. Check how many points your ticket carries there or by calling SGI.
Novice 2 restart
To graduate, a Novice 2 driver needs 12 months free of at-fault collisions, traffic convictions and suspensions. A ticket restarts that 12 months from the conviction date. Details: Saskatchewan Novice 1 and Novice 2 rules.
Safe Driver Recognition penalties
Convictions also move you down SGI’s Safe Driver Recognition scale. New drivers start at zero. Once you drop below zero into the Penalty Zone, you pay $50 for each point, up to $1,000 for most incidents, on top of the ticket. The province’s 2019 announcement gave the example of a driver starting at zero who gets three distracted driving tickets in a year owing $1,200 in SDR penalties. You drive your way back out: each incident-free year moves you one point toward zero. See SGI GDL Improvement program and Safe Driver Recognition.
If police stop you
- Police can signal with red and blue lights, a special stop light, voice or hand signals. Pull over as close to the right edge as you can, and stop before the next intersection.
- Show your licence and registration when asked. If you don’t have them, police may allow up to 48 hours to produce them.
- Police can require a safety inspection, and can order an unsafe vehicle off the road until it is repaired. A vehicle parked in the travelled part of a road can also be impounded if it presents a hazard.
- A ticket shows the offence, date, time and location, and where and when to appear in court. Tickets for stunting, racing and excessive speed bring an immediate roadside suspension.
- For some less serious offences the ticket shows a fine you can pay if you plead guilty. To plead not guilty, you must appear in court. You may want to consult a lawyer first.
- You may be arrested for driving an unregistered vehicle or without a licence, failing to stop for police, driving without care and attention, tampering with a vehicle, failing to give information to police, or a Criminal Code offence, or if police believe you will not appear in court.
Criminal Code driving offences
Besides impaired driving, these include criminal negligence (reckless disregard for life and safety), dangerous driving, failing to stop at the scene of a collision, and driving while disqualified. A conviction cancels your licence, with an automatic disqualification of 1, 3 or 5 years based on your Criminal Code convictions in the last 10 years. A court can add a driving prohibition across Canada, and the longer of the two applies. Cities, towns and some villages also have bylaws, which must complement The Traffic Safety Act.
Scenario: one Friday night
Jordan, 17, on Novice 1, drives a parent’s car with one friend on a road posted at 80 km/h and hits 135 km/h. That is 55 km/h over, so police impound the car for 30 days and the parent pays the tow and storage. Jordan’s conviction triggers the GDL Improvement program and a move down the SDR scale. Once Jordan reaches Novice 2, a further conviction would restart the 12-month incident-free clock.
Common questions
Can novice drivers use hands-free in Saskatchewan?
No. Learner, Novice 1 and Novice 2 drivers cannot use any cellphone, hand-held or hands-free. Calling 9-1-1 is allowed.
What is the speed limit in Saskatchewan if there is no sign?
80 km/h, unless you are in a town or city whose entrance signs set a different limit.
How fast can you pass a tow truck in Saskatchewan?
No more than 60 km/h when it is stopped with its amber, or amber and blue, lights flashing.
Will my parents’ car be impounded if I am caught stunting?
Yes. The vehicle is impounded for 30 days whoever owns it, and the owner pays the towing and storage.
Can passengers be charged for distracting the driver?
Saskatchewan says it is illegal for you or any of your passengers to perform stunts or activities that distract, startle or interfere with other road users.
Do photo radar tickets affect my licence?
Photo radar tickets go to the registered owner of the vehicle. Ask SGI how a photo radar ticket is recorded if you are the owner.
Related: learning to drive in Saskatchewan, zero tolerance for new drivers in Saskatchewan, excessive speeding across Canada, Saskatchewan rural and gravel road driving.
Sources
- SGI, “Saskatchewan Driver’s Handbook: A guide to safe driving 2026-27”, sections 2 (GDL), 3.1, 3.2, 8.4, 8.5 and “Vehicle impoundments” (sgi.sk.ca)
- Government of Saskatchewan, “Heads Up: Distracted Driving Penalties Are Getting Tougher”, 19 November 2019 (saskatchewan.ca)
- SGI, “New Distracted Driving Penalties” backgrounder (sgi.sk.ca)