Photo radar became a story in Ontario, when the then Premier Bob Rae and company decided to implement photo radar to reduce the accident rate in the province. The entire basis for this project was the assumption that speed kills. On June 9, 1993, the Minister of Transportation Gilles Pouliot introduced Bill 47 to the Ontario legislature. Bill 47 is the act that allows police to use photo radar photographs as evidence in court. Immediately thereafter, a “pilot project” to evaluate the effectiveness of photo radar as a deterrent and as a method to modify driver behavior began.Mr. Collin Brittan headed the pilot project, under the auspices of the Integrated Safety Project. Six GMC Safari minivans were bought by the O.P.P. and were fitted with leased Gastonomer Photo radar units. Data collection began in mid July on the test sites. Initial data collection using magnetic induction loops imbedded in the roadway on 2, 4 and 6 lane highways around the Toronto area began. By the end of July signs were posted informing motorists that speed enforcement by photo radar was occurring. Enforcement with the vans began on August 15, 1994, around the Toronto area.
Largely despite heavy public relations by the government and the police, the media viewed photo radar as nothing more than a cash grab and cited every problem encountered with glee. One of the more glaring errors of the project was that while still just a pilot project to collect data on effectiveness of the program, why were they handing out fines and planning on going province wide before the completion of the study to back it up? People do not have to have a masters degree in statistics to figure out what the conclusions of the report were going to be at the end of the study.
Unfortunately for the government and police and fortunate for the people of the province, the program began on the eve of an election. As such it became an election issue and the leader of the party that would sweep into government pledged to stop photo radar. One of the first announcements coming from the Ontario Solicitor General Bob Runcinman was the termination of the program. He cited that he viewed it as nothing more than a cash grab. He also announced that in its place 6 new patrol cars would patrol the areas formerly patrolled by the photo radar vans.
A huge sigh of relief was breathed by the vast majority of the motoring public in the province. Unfortunately, the government that stopped the pilot project left the law on the books and there are no current plans to remove it. That was one glaring fact that worried me greatly. As it turns out my worst fears have come to pass. In a deficit cutting frenzy, the government has drastically cut transfer payments to the various municipalities in the province and as a result they are strapped for cash.
In the recent Omnibus bill passed in the new year sweeping new measures for revenue collection were given to the municipalities. As expected, Ottawa Carelton Regional Council voted 13 to 5 to institute a photo radar program in the Regional Municipality of Ottawa. I have also gotten E-mail, that the town of Aurora now has plans to implement photo radar. As time goes by and councilors who find it to be political suicide to raise taxes, will no doubt find it an easy scapegoat to nab those law breaking speeders for sorely needed revenues.
The fact that as money is getting scarcer and the death and injury rate continues to decline in the province (per 1,000,000km traveled) proves that money, not safety is the impetus for photo radar. When the scope of the cuts were announced, I received a rash of truly nasty letters from people that support photo radar as a means of revenue collection. While I personally find it repugnant to cut money to the poor and disabled, raising money with photo radar is not the way to solve the problem. The police and the courts are there to safeguard the public. Tax collection for the government is not, nor should it ever be their domain. To do so in my opinion, will erode public confidence in speed limits and the police as well. The larger consequences of that happening far outweigh any potential benefit.