Stephen Horsman says GPS units for vans transporting prisoners pending

Public Safety Minister Stephen Horsman says working GPS units are on the way for all provincial government vans transporting prisoners and detainees in New Brunswick.

In the meantime, his department is looking into an alleged speeding incident involving a van marked "Corrections" near Petersville Hilllast week, which was captured by a Fredericton pastor's dashboard camera, he said.

The recording shows a white van with"Corrections" decals on itsailpast William McKelvie's southbound vehicle on Highway7, on April 28,a rainy and windy day.

McKelvieestimates the government van was travellingat 150 km/h in a 100 km/h zone and contends it was "absolutelyendangering people's lives," including any prisoners who may have been in the back of the speeding van, and other motorists.

Horsman, a former police officer, says he wants to see evidence before passing judgement.

"Our department is looking at everything," hesaidafter question period on Tuesday."We're taking all the evidence. And then we'll discuss what should be taking place after that."

We want to make sure that these are placed in every provincial government van carrying prisoners or clients to make sure people are driving at a speed limit that is safe.- Stephen Horsman, Public Safety minister

The GPS system in the works will automaticallyalert department officials when a van exceeds the speed limit.

Former Justice minister Troy Lifford had ordered GPS units to be installed in the sheriff's services fleet of vehicles more than a year ago "as amechanism to improve safety, verify incidentsand help improve asset use."

As of last week,the devices hadstill not been put to use due to unresolvedsoftware issues. But Horsman says the problems are close to being resolved.

The ministeralso revealed Tuesday that GPS devices will also be installed in Corrections vans.

"We want to make sure that these are placed in every provincial government van carrying prisoners or clients to make sure people are driving at a speed limit that is safe," he said.

Horsman could not offer a timeline. "We're almost there, I can tell you that," hesaid."We're almost there, and they'll be all rectified."

Horsman said he didn't know if there were prisoners in the back of the van on the dashcam video.

GPS units are widely used in the commercial trucking industry.They have beenin Ambulance New Brunswick vans for seven years.

'It actually shook my van'

CBC News shared the dashcamvideo captured by McKelvie with the Department of Public Safetyon Monday.

It shows McKelvie's vehicle passinga transport truck on a divided section of the highway and returningto the right-hand lane.

Then, awhite van with "New Brunswick" and the"Corrections" decals overtakes McKelvie and at least twoother vehicles beforequickly disappearing from view.

McKelvie says he was "shocked." Hehad just spedup to about 120 km/h to pass the transport truck and was returning to the posted speed limit when the white van suddenly appeared, he said.

"It actually shook my van, he went by so fast," said McKelvie.

"If there were people in the back [of the van], they were in danger."

McKelvie says he tried to catch the van for a better look, but was unsuccessful.

"There was no way my van could keep up to catch him. He just kept pulling away," he said.

"When I looked down and realized we were going a little too fastactually way too fastI backed off."

RCMP warned sheriffs about speeding

The alleged incident comes more than 2years after theRCMP issued a warning to the provincial government's sheriff's department about speeding incidents involving drivers of vans transporting detainees.

The information was revealed in a September 2012 internal department email obtained by CBC News.

In the email,a head sheriff warns officers to slow down, noting RCMP had clocked some sheriffservices vans being driven at "inexcusable speeds" of 134 km/h, 147 km/h and 152 km/h.

In another incident, in April 2012, the crash of a sheriff's van during a snowstorm injured three detainees and two sheriff'sofficers.

One of those officers,Natalie Doucet,later told CBC News the driver of the van was travelling too fast for the road conditions at the time.

It was following a December 2013 CBC Newsinvestigation into that crash thatthen-Justice ministerTroy Liffordannounced plans for the GPS units.