Ottawa sees drop in speeders caught by photo radar cameras in April

The photo radar camera on King Edward Avenue at Bruyere Street. (CTV News Ottawa)

Motorists continued to slow down around photo radar cameras on Ottawa’s roads this spring, as the number of tickets issued for speeding dropped for a third straight month.

Statistics from the City of Ottawa show 30,191 speeding tickets were issued through the automated speed enforcement camera program in April, down from 37,285 speed tickets issued in April 2024.

• Thousands of ‘obstructed’ licence plates captured by Ottawa’s red light, photo radar cameras

A total of 30,364 speeding tickets were issued by Ottawa’s 60 photo radar cameras in March, down from 43,416 tickets in March 2024. The automated speed enforcement program issued 19,582 speeding tickets in February, down from 22,861 speeding tickets the year before.

The statistics don’t provide an explanation for the drop in photo radar camera tickets issued on Ottawa roads this year.

The first-quarter financial report showed there was a $1.5 million deficit in the Traffic Services department through the first three months of the year “primarily due” to the automated speed enforcement program.

“Revenues for the period were lower-than-anticipated as a result of inclement weather and changes in driver behaviour,” staff said. “Any surplus or deficit in the automated speed enforcement program at year-end will be offset in the Road Safety Reserve.”

• These were Ottawa’s busiest photo radar cameras in March

One issue may be hidden, damaged or missing licence plates on vehicles caught by the cameras.

Statistics provided to CTV News Ottawa show 15,480 vehicles with damaged, obstructed or missing licence plates were captured by Ottawa’s automated speed enforcement cameras in the first three months of this year, meaning tickets could not be issued.

The photo radar camera on King Edward Avenue, between Bolton Street and St. Patrick Street, was the busiest camera in April, catching 3,543 speeders.

A total of 1,877 tickets were issued through the photo radar camera at Walkley Road, between Halifax Drive and Harding Road, while the camera on Colonial Road, between Delson Drive and Frank Kenny Road, caught 1,594 speeders in April.

The City of Ottawa says 111,281 speeding tickets were issued through the photo radar program in the first four months of 2025, down from 123,196 tickets in the first four months of 2024.

The City of Ottawa has 60 photo radar cameras in operation in school zones, community safety zones and high-speed zones across the city. There are plans to install 24 new photo radar cameras on roads across the city in 2025.

Revenue collected through the automated speed enforcement camera program supports Ottawa’s Road Safety Action Plan and is reinvested into road safety initiatives for all road users.

Here is a look at the 10 busiest photo radar cameras in Ottawa in April

• King Edward Avenue, between Bolton Street and St. Patrick Street: 3,543 tickets
• Walkley Road, between Halifax Drive and Harding Road:1,877 tickets
• Colonial Road, between Delson Drive and Frank Kenny Road:  1,594 tickets
• Merivale Road, between MacFarlane Road and Brookdale Avenue: 1,474 tickets
• Cedarview Road, between Fallowfield Road and Jockvale Road: 1,238 tickets
• St. Laurent Boulevard, between Noranda Avenue and Clarke Avenue: 1,100 tickets
• Jeanne d’Arc Boulevard, between Orleans Blvd. and Paddler Way/Vorlage Drive: 1,048 tickets
• Katimavik Road, between Castlefrank Road and McGibbon Drive/Sewall Way: 933 tickets
• Walkley Road, between Colliston Crescent (north)/Albion Road and Colliston Crescent (south): 852 tickets
• Bronson Avenue, between Raven Road and University Drive: 807 tickets