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Photo radar won’t change much in Red Deer following provincial report

Feb 22, 2019 | 4:57 PM

Provincially mandated changes to photo radar regulations are unlikely to change how The City of Red Deer uses the practice.

The Alberta Government said Thursday that it believes municipalities are using photo radar as a “cash cow.”

Transportation Minister Brian Mason released a third-party report showing that in 2016, photo radar generated $220 million in revenue for municipalities, while collisions went down across the province just 1.4 per cent.

The changes, many of which relate to highways, will come into effect this June. Municipalities will now be required to annually report and evaluate how their respective programs are achieving traffic safety outcomes.

“City of Red Deer policy is very much in alignment with many of the recommendations that came forward. Our ultimate purpose in automated traffic enforcement is — number one – public safety, and certainly being transparent in terms of where those locations are,” Mayor Tara Veer said Thursday.

The City of Red Deer had 333 designated photo radar locations, including 10 intersection camera locations, as of 2016. That year, photo radar generated just shy of $1.6 million in revenue.

“Even before the provincial report, we did proactively do a review to make sure that the intersection uses were in the interest of public safety,” Veer added. “It’s also important to note that the revenue which is generated goes exclusively into the policing budget. It goes back into public safety. So The City gleans a portion of the revenue and the province takes the rest.”

Municipalities get to keep 75 per cent of photo radar revenue, with the rest going to the province, plus a surcharge for a victims-of-crime-fund.

Veer clarifies that while changes are minimal, The City will need to review transition zones.

Paul Goranson, Director of Protective Services is confident photo radar is doing its intended job.

“What the stats show is that if people are driving slow, the severity of accidents, if they do happen, is not as bad,” he says. “As well, the percentage of fatalities related to collisions goes down. Both of these factors point to benefits from a safety perspective from having automated traffic enforcement.”

According to the report, automated traffic enforcement contributed to a 5.3 per cent drop in the proportion of fatal collisions across the province over ten years. 

The study also found that more people than not agreed or strongly agreed that intersection safety cameras make intersections safer, that knowing they could receive a fine has prompted them to drive safer, and that getting a ticket has improved their driving.

The full report can be viewed at Alberta.ca.