Ontario Premier Doug Ford is praising the City of Vaughan for cancelling its Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) program, urging more municipalities to follow suit.
Vaughan’s City Council voted to immediately strike down the program during a special meeting on Monday, noting that it will be exploring “traffic calming” measures to reduce speeding, especially around school zones.
Automatic speed cameras were first installed across the city after the program was launched in April, but had been on pause since June as staff reviewed the implementation.
“We paused the City’s Automated Speed Enforcement program so staff could evaluate if we could strike the right balance between protecting our most vulnerable road users and ensuring no unfair financial burden is placed on residents at a time of financial uncertainty. Upon review, it is clear the balance tips too heavily toward monetary penalties on residents,” Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca said in an announcement.
Although the cancellation is now in effect, speed cameras in the York Region are still operating, as the city works to file a motion to dismiss them. The city also advises that there will be no refunds for fines issued before the pause on June 5.
Besides the recent suspension, the city is continuing its MoveSmart Mobility Management Strategy, which supports more sustainable and efficient traffic management approaches, including road reviews and educational campaigns.
“I will continue to work with Council and staff to fight against reckless driving, reduce speeding and protect all road users and pedestrians,” Del Duca added.
On Tuesday morning, following the announcement, Ford also spoke out in support of the council’s decision, referring to speed cameras as a “cash grab.”
“Mayor Steven Del Duca and Vaughan City Council get it. Municipal speed cameras are nothing but a cash grab. We can keep our streets safe without making life more expensive for hardworking taxpayers,” he wrote on X.
The premier had previously spoken out against ASE at an unrelated conference last week, suggesting that the measure was unfair towards drivers.
“They should take out those cameras, all of them. If you want to slow down traffic, that’s cool. You put the big huge signs, big flashing lights, crossing areas, people will slow down. This is nothing but a tax grab,” he told reporters at the time.
Referencing Del Duca’s plan to cancel the program, Ford also urged other Ontario municipalities to follow suit, suggesting that he would “help them get rid of them very shortly” if they don’t do so on their own.
Ford’s comments came after 16 speed cameras were damaged in just one night in Toronto, including one device located on Parkside Dr., which has been cut off for the seventh time in less than 10 months.
Besides the premier’s protests, Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow defended the effectiveness of speed cameras while speaking with reporters last week, referencing a SickKids study that shows a correlation between speed and chances of being killed in an accident.
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Reacting to the decision and Ford’s comments, some people online appear to agree with the premier over the need to remove the cameras, with some even suggesting other solutions.
“Put them in school zones only. Have them give tickets only during school hours. Other than that it’s a cash grab,” one person said.
“Speed limits in many cases are too low anyways. The fact that most roads outside of urban areas are still 80 km/h is ridiculous,” another person suggested.
“While you’re at it, get rid of red light cameras or at least change the rules so that if the light is yellow, you make a judgement call on whether or not to keep going, and you cross the line a microsecond after it turns red, you don’t get nailed. That’s unfair,”
Meanwhile, other people opposed the cancellation, saying that while cameras can lead to unfair fines, they are also an effective way to save lives.
“Are you going to increase funding for police budgets so they can hire more officers to run radar to keep Ontario citizens safe from speeders? Statistics show that streets are safer with speed and red light cameras,” one person said.
“Speed kills, just slow down!” another person said.
“Yes, they bring in funds to support programs; however, they are meant to be a deterrent for speeding. You know there are speed limits for a reason, right? If people obeyed the speed limits, there’d be no problem, and everyone would be safer,” a different person added.
