Premier Ford urges municipalities to ‘get rid’ of photo radar cameras as Ottawa installs 24 new cameras

The City of Ottawa has installed "Municipal Speed Camera - Coming Soon" signs at 24 locations across Ottawa. New photo radar cameras will be installed at the locations by the end of fall. (Natalie van Rooy/CTV News Ottawa)

Mayor Mark Sutcliffe says the City of Ottawa is “open to ideas” to reduce speeding and improving safety, as Premier Doug Ford calls on municipalities to hit the brakes on photo radar cameras.

Ford warned Ontario municipalities to “get rid of speed cameras” on Tuesday, calling them nothing but a “tax grab.”

The City of Ottawa currently has 60 photo radar cameras in community safety zones, school zones and “high speed” areas, with work underway to install 24 new cameras by the end of the year. A total of 190,439 speeding tickets were issued through the automated speed enforcement camera program in the January to July period.

In a post on social media, Sutcliffe said, “combatting speeding” is a top priority for residents.

“Since it was introduced by the provincial government in 2017, automated speed enforcement has proven to be an effective tool to combat speeding when used appropriately. Results show it leads to reduced speeds, and it allows police to redeploy resources to other priorities,” Sutcliffe said.

“However, we are always open to ideas and look forward to working with the province to improve our approach to reducing speeding and improving safety.”

The Ontario government passed legislation in 2017 to allow municipalities to set up photo radar cameras in community safety and school zones. Signs must be installed to advise drivers that the camera is in operation.

On Tuesday, Ford urged municipalities to get rid of the speed enforcement cameras.

“They should take out those cameras, all of them,” Ford told reporters in Toronto. “This is nothing but a tax grab.”

Toronto police are investigating after at least 16 photo radar cameras were cut down across the city overnight. There have been more than 800 reported incidents of vandalism involving speed cameras in Toronto this year.

Ford told reporters he is “dead against” photo radar cameras and urged municipalities to follow the lead of Vaughan and scrap the camera program.

“Hopefully, the cities will get rid of them… or I’m going to help them get rid of them very shortly,” Ford said.

Late Tuesday afternoon, the Ontario government said it will remove automated speed enforcement cameras this fall if municipalities don’t take steps to scrap them.

“We are exploring alternative tools to enhance traffic safety without the use of automatic speed cameras that are nothing but a cash grab,” Dakota Brasier, the director of media relations for Ontario Transportation Minister Prabmeet Sarkaria, said in an email statement to CTV News Toronto.

“We want to see cities take steps to remove them, otherwise we are prepared to help get rid of them when the House returns in the fall.”

According to statistics on the City of Ottawa’s website, compliance with the speed limit increased to 57 per cent within three months of the camera being installed, and there was a 69 per cent compliance after one year.

Revenue generated from Ottawa’s photo radar cameras support Ottawa’s Road Safety Action Plan, which uses education, engineering and enforcement to promote road safety for all road users.

24 new cameras in Ottawa

Signs stating “Municipal Speed Camera Coming Soon” have been installed in 24 locations in Ottawa to warn motorists that photo radar cameras will soon be operational.

Council approved a plan to install 15 to 20 cameras a year during the 2022-2026 term.

Here is the list of locations for the new automated speed enforcement cameras in 2025

• Abbott Street East between Iber Road and Robert Grant Avenue
• Bank Street from Exhibition Way to Wilton Crescent
• Bearbrook Road between the continuation of Bearbrook Road and Westpark Drive North
• Carriere Street from Orleans Boulevard to Michaelsem Street
• Conroy Road from Lorry Greenberg Drive to Hunt Club Road
• Donald Street from Barnaby Private to Telford Avenue
• Dunrobin Road from Porcupine Trail to Thomas A. Dolan Parkway (Village of Dunrobin)
• Fisher Avenue between Trent Street and McCooey Lane
• Fisher Avenue between Meadowlands Drive and Urbisci Private
• Klondike Road between Sandhill Road and Marconi Avenue
• Lanark Avenue from Beechgrove Avenue to Briarway Private
• Longfields Drive from Mountshannon Drive to Silver Sage Avenue
• Manotick Main Street from Bankfield Road to Highcroft Drive (Village of Manotick)
• McArthur Avenue from Irwin Miller Street to Brant Street
• Meadowlands Drive East between Chesterton Drive and Tiverton Drive
• Old Richmond Road from Sanibel Private to Seyton Drive
• Osgoode Main Street from Elizabeth Street to Vance Street
• Perth Street between Cockburn Street and King Street North (Village of Richmond)
• River Run Avenue between Dovetail Heights and Grand Canal Street
• Rockdale Road between Horizon Drive and Buckland Road
• St. Georges Street between Marconi Drive and Galloway Drive
• Stonehaven Drive between Bridlewood Drive and Tamara Way
• Valin Street from Winsome Terrace to Provence Avenue
• Woodridge Crescent at Bayshore Drive near Bayshore Public School

With files from CP24’s Codi Wilson and Bryann Aguilar