November 28, 2005

Photo-Radar: an effective traffic safety countermeasure

Honourable Harinder S. Takhar, M.P.P.
Minister, Ontario Ministry of Transportation
Queen’s Park
Toronto, Ontario

Dear Minister,

This past summer, the Canada Safety Council (CSC) was disappointed to hear that your government dismissed a return to photo radar to Ontario highways despite growing evidence that it reduces speeds and saves lives. That announcement came on the heels of a study from the OPP showing serious collisions declined when photo radar was used in 1994 and 1995. That study looked at every highway in the greater Toronto area where photo radar was used.

A study, Safety and Economic Impacts of Photo Radar Program, published in the December 2005 issue of the journal Traffic Injury Prevention will be of particular interest to you. In this study, researchers affiliated with the School of Public Affairs at Baruch College in New York City assessed the economic impacts of a large photo radar program in British Columbia. The findings revealed an annual net benefit of about $114 million to British Columbians and net annual savings of over $38 million for the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia. The study concluded that automated photo radar traffic safety enforcement can be an effective and efficient means to manage traffic speed, reduce collisions and injuries, and combat the huge resulting economic burden to society. However, the researchers caution such a program should be planned and implemented with the focus on safety improvement and not revenue generation. This study adds to the growing mountain of international research favouring photo radar as an effective traffic safety countermeasure.

CSC has long maintained that the real purpose of photo radar is not to catch people breaking the law, but rather to stop them from offending in the first place. The measure of success should not be how many offenders are caught or how much money is paid in fines but rather the decrease in offences and collisions.

The alternative to photo radar is not very appealing — letting irresponsible drivers continue to endanger the public!

In the interests of public health and traffic safety, the Ontario government must consider bringing back photo radar to catch speeding drivers. As the evidence clearly indicates, it is a proven, cost effective way to reduce speeding violations — and most Ontarians want it.

Sincerely,

Emile-J. Therien
President

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		November 28, 2005 Photo-Radar: an effective traffic safety countermeasure Honourable Harinder S. Takhar, M.P.P. Minister, Ontario Ministry of Transportation Queen’s Park Toronto, Ontario Dear Minister, This past summer, the Canada Safety Council (CSC) was disappointed to hear that your government dismissed a return to photo radar to Ontario highways despite growing evidence that it reduces speeds and saves lives. That announcement came on the heels of a study from the OPP showing serious collisions declined when photo radar was used in 1994 and 1995. That study looked at every highway in the greater Toronto area where photo radar was used. A study, Safety and Economic Impacts of Photo Radar Program, published in the December 2005 issue of the journal Traffic Injury Prevention will be of particular interest to you. In this study, researchers affiliated with the School of Public Affairs at Baruch College in New York City assessed the economic impacts of a large photo radar program in British Columbia. The findings revealed an annual net benefit of about $114 million to British Columbians and net annual savings of over $38 million for the Insurance Corporation of British Columbia. The study concluded that automated photo radar traffic safety enforcement can be an effective and efficient means to manage traffic speed, reduce collisions and injuries, and combat the huge resulting economic burden to society. However, the researchers caution such a program should be planned and implemented with the focus on safety improvement and not revenue generation. This study adds to the growing mountain of international research favouring photo radar as an effective traffic safety countermeasure. CSC has long maintained that the real purpose of photo radar is not to catch people breaking the law, but rather to stop them from offending in the first place. The measure of success should not be how many offenders are caught or how much money is paid in fines but rather the decrease in offences and collisions. The alternative to photo radar is not very appealing — letting irresponsible drivers continue to endanger the public! In the interests of public health and traffic safety, the Ontario government must consider bringing back photo radar to catch speeding drivers. As the evidence clearly indicates, it is a proven, cost effective way to reduce speeding violations — and most Ontarians want it. Sincerely, Emile-J. Therien President			Dangers of speeding Response from Ontario Minister (PDF)