Banning speed cameras ‘a dangerous decision,’ says Mississauga city councillor

Mississauga is among a number of municipalities condemning Ontario Premier Doug Ford’s move to scrap automated speed enforcement cameras across the province.

One city councillor in Canada’s seventh-largest city called the commitment by Ford and the provincial government to eliminate the anti-speeding devices “a dangerous decision” that will compromise road safety — particularly in school zones.

“This decision shifts police resources from catching criminals to pulling over parents,” Ward 2 Coun. Alvin Tedjo said in a post to social media late this week.

In a related post to X, Tedjo encouraged residents to sign a petition calling on the province to allow the ASE cameras to remain in place.

“Tell the Premier that you want to keep our roads safe,” the councillor wrote. “Let’s make the program better instead of making our roads more dangerous.”

Anti-speed camera legislation to be introduced in October

Ontario municipalities have lined up to take issue with Ford’s announcement on Thursday that the province will introduce legislation next month to ban the use of automated speed enforcement cameras.

“At a time when governments at all levels should be doing everything they can to lower costs and make life more affordable, too many municipalities are using speed cameras as a cash grab,” Ford said at a press conference. “Enough is enough. Instead of making life more expensive by sending speeding tickets to drivers weeks after the fact, we’re supporting road safety measures that will prevent speeding in the first place, keep costs down and keep our streets safe.”

Under the Ontario government’s plan, a new provincial fund will help municipalities implement alternative road safety measures such as speed bumps, roundabouts, raised crosswalks and curb extensions, as well as public education and improved signage, to slow down drivers.

If passed, the proposed legislation will ban the use of ASE cameras immediately.

Mississauga to send “strong letter” to Premier Ford

Mississauga Mayor Carolyn Parrish said earlier this week city council was going to send a “strong letter” to the Premier asking for the speed cameras to remain in school zones “and let him do what he wants with the rest of it.”

In a post to X on Friday afternoon, the mayor wrote “the city is disappointed that the province is going to remove speed cameras. Mississauga has used 22 cameras in school zones which have resulted in long-term speed reduction.”

Parrish told councillors and senior city staff at council on Wednesday that it was her understanding Ford believes the City of Toronto has been abusing the speed camera program, using it more as a cash grab, and that’s why he’s targeting the program in all municipalities.

Mayor Carolyn Parrish suggested city council send a letter to Ontario Premier Doug Ford asking that speed cameras remain in school zones should the larger program be eliminated.

The mayor insisted the cameras should at least remain on duty in school zones, where they’ve proven successful in slowing down Mississauga drivers since the launch of the program in 2021.

In an effort to convince the province, Parrish said a letter to Ford asking that school areas be exempt from any plan to eliminate the speed cameras is important “because if we have to start putting speed bumps on 150 school sites, it’s going to cost a fortune — and you can spend (that) money in much better ways.”

In addition to the effectiveness of the speed cameras the past few years in Mississauga school zones, city officials also argue that to replace the devices with speed bumps — even though the province would pick up the tab — would be a cumbersome undertaking.

Ward 6 Coun. Joe Horneck argued the ASE camera initiative has been successful to date in Mississauga and, from what he hears, in other towns and cities as well.

He said in response to Ford’s suggestion the speed camera program is simply a way to add cash to local government coffers, municipalities “are unanimously rising and saying this is a safety matter; it’s not a cash grab.”

In further making his case, Horneck pointed to Mississauga statistics showing the average ticket doled out through the ASE camera program targets drivers doing 16 km/h over the posted 30 or 40 km/h speed limit — and not motorists who are just barely exceeding the limit by five to 10 km/h, as Ford has suggested.

In addition, the Ward 6 councillor noted that 484 drivers have been ticketed for travelling at 50 km/h or more above posted speed limits in the city.

“I would hate to see this program go away,” Horneck said.

Ward 7 Coun. Dipika Damerla says there’s room for improvement in how speed cameras are used.

Meanwhile, Ward 7 Coun. Dipika Damerla said while the program has been effective in Mississauga, there’s room for improvement.

She said because the speed cameras rotate from one location to another throughout the year, many drivers feel the devices “suddenly appear” out of nowhere, giving the impression of a cash grab.

“Perception is reality, and when the camera just suddenly appears, there’s a bit of a gotcha element. I know we send an email out (telling residents where cameras are being deployed), but nobody’s paying attention,” Damerla said. “So I think there’s room to really improve how these cameras are used; there’s a reason that a lot of people feel there’s a gotcha element to it.”

Ward 5 Coun. Natalie Hart said in a post to X on Thursday speed bumps, as a solution, “are costly and slow to implement, and they don’t hold drivers accountable.”

On the other hand, she added, “Speed cameras directly address unsafe driving and help improve safety in our neighbourhoods.”

Speed cameras have extra benefit, says councillor

Hart added there’s an extra benefit to speed cameras in that fines collected via the devices “are reinvested into local road safety programs, ensuring that the funds directly support initiatives that keep our streets safer for everyone.”

City officials across the board have said the speed cameras have proven effective and in June 2024 they renewed the contract for 22 existing cameras and signed on to add five dozen more in annual installments through 2028.

Earlier this month, Ford described the speed cameras in Toronto as nothing more than a cash grab and said he’d like to see municipalities get rid of the devices.

He made the comments during discussion of an ongoing trend in which 800 incidents of vandalism against the cameras had been reported this year in Toronto (as of early September).

Ford further suggested there are better ways to deter speeding, particularly in school zones.

Under the ASE program, speeding drivers receive tickets in the mail after having their licence plates photographed by the on-street cameras.

The cameras rotate among numerous locations across the city, targeting school zones (community safety zones) where scores of children can be put at risk by speeding drivers.

As they move the cameras from one location to the next, officials note new sites are marked with clear signs at least 90 days before the cameras are installed, and while they are in operation.

Additionally, an online map of camera locations is posted on the city’s website.