Alberta government aims to cut photo radar sites by 70%
Calgary police chief says minister ignored safety input
The Alberta government plans to review photo radar sites over the next four months in a bid to reduce the number in the province by 70 per cent.
Photo radar sites on all provincial highways will be banned on April 1, except for those located in school, playground and construction zones.
The province says it will grant municipalities permission to set up photo radar sites on a case-by-case basis if the case is made to use them in a high collision area. Those extra sites will be reviewed every two years to see if they've helped reduce collisions.
Transportation and Economic Corridors Minister Devin Dreeshen said he believes municipalities have used the sites for revenue generation, not traffic safety, for too long.
"Our goal is clear to ensure that photo radar is a tool for protecting people, not a government cash cow," Dreeshen said at a news conference in Edmonton Monday
"Last year alone, Alberta's photo radar system generated $145,000,000, but this revenue came at the expense of public trust. With these changes, we are putting safety first."
Watch | Alberta government to cut photo radar 'cash cow':
Alberta has about 2,200 photo radar sites used by 24 municipalities.
The new measures also end "speed-on-green" photo radar at intersections. Drivers will only receive tickets if they run red lights.
Municipalities have said photo radar helps cut down on speeding. But Dreeshen said he's seen a "mixed bag of data" on the issue as some municipalities have improved safety after removing the sites.
Police chief opposes cut
Calgary Police Chief Mark Neufeld, who is also the president of the Alberta Association of Chiefs of Police, tore into Dreeshen's announcement in a news conference Monday afternoon.
"It makes it sound as though we're out there putting these things wherever to make money and then, you know, using the money for the Christmas party," he said.
Neufeld said Dreeshen ignored the association's opinion that reducing photo radar sites would increase the number of serious and fatal collisions. Neufeld said he asked Dreeshen for a meeting eight times over the summer but never received a response.
Neufeld also took issue with the tone of Dreeshen's announcement on Monday, calling it glib and disrespectful. He talked about the apron Dreeshen wore at his news conference, which had a logo with the words "cash cow" crossed out and how the minister called some photo radar sites "fishing holes."
"Having a provincial cabinet minister speak in this manner is unprofessional and it has the potential to undermine the public's trust and confidence in their police services," Neufeld said.
Neufeld added "We would encourage the minister to consider those citizens who have been injured or killed on Alberta roadways and their loved ones."
Municipal officials frustrated
Edmonton-McClung MLA Lorne Dach, the transportation critic for the NDP Opposition, said Dreeshen isn't making his decision based on data.
Dach said municipalities use ticket revenue for traffic safety measures and their policing budgets.
"The province, I think, has a duty to perhaps look at backfilling these revenues that are going to be lost as a result of this decision," he said.
Municipalities are turning a thumbs down at Dreeshen's decision.
Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek said in an interview on Friday the province's move to cut photo radar sites is a move to defund the Calgary Police Service. She said it comes at a time when police should get more funding to deal with a rapidly growing population.
Gondek said people get fined for speeding because they are breaking the law.
"So [is the province] now saying they're preferring lawlessness to actually enforcing speed limits?" she asked.
"I'm not sure what they're trying to achieve, but in the end, it will cost taxpayers in Calgary more money because the province is giving less of their share to Calgary Police Service."
Tyler Gandam, president of Alberta Municipalities, said he thinks the photo radar cut is a political decision. He said most municipalities use photo radar revenue to improve road safety.
Gandam is also the mayor of Wetaskiwin. He said the city used the photo radar revenue to put left turn signals at several problem intersections.
Gandam said banning photo radar will increase the need for enforcement by police and peace officers, which are currently in short supply.
"There isn't enough people around to do the job that we had," he said. " The automated traffic enforcement was another tool that we had to be able to help out with that community safety."
St. Albert Mayor Cathy Heron is expecting a $600,000 loss in her city's budget due to the planned photo radar cut.
Heron thinks photo radar should be managed by the Ministry of Public Safety and Emergency Management not Transportation and Economic Corridors. She suspects Minister Mike Ellis, a former Calgary police sergeant, might have a different view of the use of photo radar than Dreeshen.
"I've talked to Minister Ellis," Heron said. "He seems to agree with us that the tool is very useful in increasing safety on the street."
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With files from Scott Dippel