Speed cameras reduce speeding, make our streets safer, and help save lives. But last week, Premier Ford announced that he plans to reverse this progress and that this proven technology will soon be banned across the province.
These cameras are often placed near schools or in areas with a history of speeding-related collisions, and they are a valuable tool in our Vision Zero toolkit that also includes road re-engineering and educational initiatives. Research has shown that they work: one recent study saw an 88% reduction in vehicles travelling faster than the speed limit by 20 km/h or more.
A broad coalition has spoken in favour of speed cameras including the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police, the Association of Municipalities of Ontario, and the Researchers at SickKids and Toronto Metropolitan University.
In Davenport, cameras placed near FH Miller Junior Public School, Oakwood Collegiate, and Stella Maris Catholic School have helped keep students safe while walking to or from school or playing at recess. And on Dufferin Street, right next to Dufferin Grove Park, a speed camera aims to slow down drivers where 24-year-old Alex Amaro was tragically killed on her bike in 2020.
Citywide, since 2024, nearly 250 pedestrians and cyclists have either died or have been seriously injured on our roads. This is a crisis, and we need to do more to protect vulnerable road users.
With his planned cancellation of the Automated Speed Enforcement program, Premier Ford is once again prioritizing the convenience of drivers over the safety of children, seniors, pedestrians, and cyclists. It should be left it to local decision makers to determine how we design our neighbourhoods, but once the Province introduces the legislation to ban speed cameras, cities across the province must comply.
Join me in telling the Premier to stop undermining proven public safety measures and that speed cameras save lives.