‘Safe for everybody’: Wilmot Council hears updates on upcoming speed cameras
Posted Sep 25, 2024 05:18:20 AM.
Last Updated Sep 25, 2024 04:39:41 PM.
Wilmot Council was shown updates ahead of new speed camera additions that will keep children and communities safe.
The presentation was made to council on Monday, detailing both the current setup and what 16 new cameras installed this November region-wide will do for area.
“We’ve got 16 locations with four cameras rotating through,” Doug Spooner, acting transportation commissioner for the Region of Waterloo, said. “Speed compliance in those areas of the network has increased by 63 per cent. The pilot program is working today.”
Spooner went on to detail statistics that show globally, excessive speeding is a contributing factor in a quarter of all fatal crashes. He said speed cameras successfully reduce those vehicle collisions by 50 per cent, in turn lowering those serious and fatal injuries by up to 44 per cent.
“If I presented any program other than one in transportation, where I said to you that we could increase the survivability rate for our residents from 15 to 70 per cent, we would all support it,” said Spooner.
Speeding is clearly an issue throughout the region, he said while showing numbers of some of the worst incidents of speeding over the past few years.
One situation that happened saw a driver going 111 km/h in a 40 kilometre zone on Westmount Road in Kitchener, another where a driver reached speeds of 121 km/h in a 60 kilometre zone on Three Bridges Road in Woolwich, along with another driver going 51 km/h over the speed limit at a 40 kilometre zone on Snyders Road in Wilmot.
“I believe, in our community, we should be safe for everybody as we move about,” said Spooner. “That our friends that walk, wheel, cycle, drive, and take transit or use a horse and buggy, should feel safe while they do those activities.”
The meeting also discussed the current layout of speed cameras, pointing to the specifics for those living in Wilmot Township.
“Currently, there is one camera in place, as you know, just outside of Baden on Snyder’s Road. The plan for the immediate future in November is to add an additional camera,” noted Spooner, speaking to the upcoming camera on Waterloo Street outside Forest Glen Public School in New Hamburg.
The current system has been met with some controversy though, as the camera located in Wilmot has been damaged or cut down on multiple occasions since it was first installed.
The presentation given wasn’t designed to seek further approvals or ideas, but rather to just introduce updates to council, along with detailing the current views ahead of the new installations. Councillors had the opportunity to ask questions about the program, with many speaking to their positive views of the project.
“My observation is that the program is doing its job. We see people slowing down,” said Councillor Kris Wilkinson. “Some may not like it, but I mean, at the end of the day, if we’re looking at safety of children and the people that live here, it’s a good thing.”
Spooner also went into detail on the new Administrative Penalties Program, which will give more control to the region when it comes to the speed camera rollout and fine management.
Currently, speeding fines are handled by the Toronto Processing Centre through the Provincial Offenses Act Court, with the new setup providing better handling speeds in treating the fines closer to that of a parking ticket.
“Effectively what this does is it moves it from a Toronto-based operation, run by a court, to a locally delivered administrative program run by regional staff.”
The full rollout plans have the new Administrative Penalties Program and the new speed cameras being installed in November later this year, with the 16 previous locations with circulating cameras being developed into permanent camera systems in January. After that, 36 new cameras are set to be installed every September from 2025 through to 2027, with another 35 installed in 2028.
