Drivers owe City of Ottawa millions in outstanding fines

A parking ticket on a vehicle in Ottawa on Monday, Aug. 25. (Dave Charbonneau/CTV News Ottawa)

Drivers owe the City of Ottawa millions of dollars in outstanding fines for parking, red-light camera and photo radar violations.

The City of Ottawa says it has made “notable progress” in recovering Provincial Offences Act fines related to parking violations, automated speed enforcement and red-light camera infractions in recent years.

However, statistics provided to CTV News Ottawa show the city is owed approximately $92 million in outstanding fines for parking and traffic camera offences.

“Approximately $68.1 million in parking fines dating back to 2001 remain outstanding, along with $15.8 million from automated speed enforcement since 2020, and $8.1 million from red light camera violations since 2009,” Joseph Muhuni, Ottawa’s Deputy City Treasurer – Revenue, told CTV News Ottawa.

“These receivables include tickets that are not yet due and those going through the court process.”

The city did not provide statistics on the number of tickets for parking violations and red light and photo radar camera violations that were outstanding.

Muhuni said each year, approximately $8.7 million in defaulted fines are transferred to the collections unit, with a recovery rate of approximately 69 per cent of outstanding fines.

“The City remains dedicated to maximizing recovery and continues to enhance its strategies to ensure fair and effective enforcement,” Muhuni said.

“Collection efforts are robust and include timely issuance of all notices and communications, escalating delinquency notices, flexible payment plan options, and the strategic use of administrative sanctions. The city also uses credit bureau reporting, tax roll additions, third-party collection agency assignments, Ministry of Transportation defaults, and civil enforcement mechanisms such as wage garnishment.”

The fine for a parking violation varies based on the parking offence, while a speeding fine through the automated speed enforcement camera program is based on the speed of the vehicle. The fine for a red-light camera violation is $325, which includes a victim surcharge.

The City of Ottawa has “reciprocal agreements” with other provinces to collect the fines for unpaid tickets from drivers outside of Ontario.