Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
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A spectre is haunting Canadian roads: the real prospect of actually having to pay a fine for not respecting the speed limit. As speed cameras proliferate, particularly in Ontario, some drivers are showing their displeasure. Many of the cameras have been vandalized and one in Toronto cut down six times.
It’s time for a deep breath.
Speed cameras shouldn’t disappear, they should multiply. The cameras are effective and, because their penalty is so easily avoided, they are fair.
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In fact, a recent poll for CAA showed majority support among Ontarians for the cameras. Politicians who pander to the minority of drivers who hate them are gambling with public safety.
Those politicians span the ideological spectrum, from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford to former Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca, now mayor of suburban Vaughan, and left-leaning Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
So busy trying to placate drivers, these politicians ignore that speed cameras work. The hit in the wallet is sufficiently unpleasant that it convinces people to slow down. For evidence, consider that the number of tickets issued by any given camera typically goes down over time.
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
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A person hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 kilometres an hour has a 90-per-cent chance of surviving. Increase the speed to 40 kilometres an hour, though, and the survival rate drops to 60 per cent. A person hit at 50 kilometres an hour has only a 20-per-cent chance of living.
Globe editorial: Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
Drivers and politicians who rail against them are ignoring the real issue and gambling with public safety
The Globe and Mail (www.theglobeandmail.com)
Legit first time I’ve seen someone argue in favor of speed cameras. Fuck speed cameras.
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Speed bumps hinder emergency vehicles though.
Speed bumps can be designed to accommodate emergency vehicles.
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They also increase noise in the neighborhood due to constant breaking ne acceleration. But tree, narrowing of streets and intersections, etc are all very effective and overall greatly improve residents quality of life.
Oh man, yeah. I didn’t think about it initially, but I used to live in front of a nasty bump in the street. Trucks that passed by would rattle and slam every time they passed on it. It was so loud it woke me up at night.
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That’s no different than a cop smashing your taillight to give you a ticket.
Yep. Except you’d have a hard time proving it. I remember a story of a New York man who fought against a traffic light camera because he said it was tricked to give out more tickets. And he was right.
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A spectre is haunting Canadian roads: the real prospect of actually having to pay a fine for not respecting the speed limit. As speed cameras proliferate, particularly in Ontario, some drivers are showing their displeasure. Many of the cameras have been vandalized and one in Toronto cut down six times.
It’s time for a deep breath.
Speed cameras shouldn’t disappear, they should multiply. The cameras are effective and, because their penalty is so easily avoided, they are fair.
…
In fact, a recent poll for CAA showed majority support among Ontarians for the cameras. Politicians who pander to the minority of drivers who hate them are gambling with public safety.
Those politicians span the ideological spectrum, from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford to former Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca, now mayor of suburban Vaughan, and left-leaning Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
So busy trying to placate drivers, these politicians ignore that speed cameras work. The hit in the wallet is sufficiently unpleasant that it convinces people to slow down. For evidence, consider that the number of tickets issued by any given camera typically goes down over time.
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
…
A person hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 kilometres an hour has a 90-per-cent chance of surviving. Increase the speed to 40 kilometres an hour, though, and the survival rate drops to 60 per cent. A person hit at 50 kilometres an hour has only a 20-per-cent chance of living.
Globe editorial: Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
Drivers and politicians who rail against them are ignoring the real issue and gambling with public safety
The Globe and Mail (www.theglobeandmail.com)
A few years ago in Washington DC, a section of a highway had a speed camera installed and they reduced the speed limit from 55mph to 35mph. The area was also marked as a construction zone. The only indication of these changes was a single speed limit sign with a small construction zone sign right above it, and the camera was immediately after it, so if you weren’t already at 35mph by the time you passed the camera, you get a ticket. There was no construction for several miles either; no cones, no workers, nothing.
I was returning home fom a service call at 3 am when this camera dinged me. I was going 55mph, and the ticket was $270. Since I was driving a company vehicle, my company didn’t give me the chance to fight it, not that I could’ve … the “judge” for these fines was an employee of the company that owned the camera, and they reportedly always sided with the company. This camera was noted to be the most profitable camera in the United States at the time. Hopefully Canada doesn’t outsource their traffic cameras.
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Flat fines mean it’s only a crime for the poor
Fines should be proportional to assets and income.
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A spectre is haunting Canadian roads: the real prospect of actually having to pay a fine for not respecting the speed limit. As speed cameras proliferate, particularly in Ontario, some drivers are showing their displeasure. Many of the cameras have been vandalized and one in Toronto cut down six times.
It’s time for a deep breath.
Speed cameras shouldn’t disappear, they should multiply. The cameras are effective and, because their penalty is so easily avoided, they are fair.
…
In fact, a recent poll for CAA showed majority support among Ontarians for the cameras. Politicians who pander to the minority of drivers who hate them are gambling with public safety.
Those politicians span the ideological spectrum, from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford to former Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca, now mayor of suburban Vaughan, and left-leaning Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
So busy trying to placate drivers, these politicians ignore that speed cameras work. The hit in the wallet is sufficiently unpleasant that it convinces people to slow down. For evidence, consider that the number of tickets issued by any given camera typically goes down over time.
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
…
A person hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 kilometres an hour has a 90-per-cent chance of surviving. Increase the speed to 40 kilometres an hour, though, and the survival rate drops to 60 per cent. A person hit at 50 kilometres an hour has only a 20-per-cent chance of living.
Globe editorial: Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
Drivers and politicians who rail against them are ignoring the real issue and gambling with public safety
The Globe and Mail (www.theglobeandmail.com)
A friend of mine was literally ripped apart a few weeks ago on his motorcycle. He was hit by a speeding texter. He lost his leg, his eye, had facial reconstruction both his arms And remaining leg are in traction. Won’t be out until October. I was for speed cameras before his accident. Even more so now.
I do wish they would be more wary of Cameras at traffic lights due to asshat peops who keep turning on left way past the light changing making it look like you ran it not the asshat.
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A friend of mine was literally ripped apart a few weeks ago on his motorcycle. He was hit by a speeding texter. He lost his leg, his eye, had facial reconstruction both his arms And remaining leg are in traction. Won’t be out until October. I was for speed cameras before his accident. Even more so now.
I do wish they would be more wary of Cameras at traffic lights due to asshat peops who keep turning on left way past the light changing making it look like you ran it not the asshat.
Holy crap. That’s horrific. I hope your friend recovers as much as possible.
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Yep. Except you’d have a hard time proving it. I remember a story of a New York man who fought against a traffic light camera because he said it was tricked to give out more tickets. And he was right.
From your link, it sounds like the camera wasn’t tricked at all and was working perfectly as intended, the city just modified the programming of a nearby traffic light to shorten the length of time the light was yellow so that more people technically ran red lights that the camera then recorded. That’s a completely different, yet related, thing.
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Holy crap. That’s horrific. I hope your friend recovers as much as possible.
Thanks. I finally got to speak to him for the first time today. I am not able to go visit him as I don’t have a vehicle to go visit and have ailments of my own which limit my mobility greatly. We are both around 70. He is feisty to say the least, I think he will do well in his rehab. Hopefully, he sues the ever loving fuck out of the guy and gets a shit ton of money so he can go retire on a island somewhere and live the Life of O’Reilly for the rest of his days.
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Fines should be proportional to assets and income.
They should be. But they aren’t.
Which is especially egregious with the terrible investment in public transportation. You want poor people to stop speeding? Give them a decent alternative to cars. -
Lane width restriction is my preferred method, but speed bumps are probably even more guaranteed to be effective.
Roundabouts are awesome. People are still idiots however.
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Oh man, yeah. I didn’t think about it initially, but I used to live in front of a nasty bump in the street. Trucks that passed by would rattle and slam every time they passed on it. It was so loud it woke me up at night.
Yup, they added bumps on my street at some points for God knows what fucking reason. McQueen sometimes has weird ideas. It was completely useless because it’s already INCREDIBLY tight, there’s no way to go more than 5kmh above the 30kmh speed limit. Right in front of my apartment, it seriously increased the noise level.
I think, on paper, it was a compromise because the street is so tight that they couldn’t do those bump outs at the intersection, but truly it didn’t need it.
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A spectre is haunting Canadian roads: the real prospect of actually having to pay a fine for not respecting the speed limit. As speed cameras proliferate, particularly in Ontario, some drivers are showing their displeasure. Many of the cameras have been vandalized and one in Toronto cut down six times.
It’s time for a deep breath.
Speed cameras shouldn’t disappear, they should multiply. The cameras are effective and, because their penalty is so easily avoided, they are fair.
…
In fact, a recent poll for CAA showed majority support among Ontarians for the cameras. Politicians who pander to the minority of drivers who hate them are gambling with public safety.
Those politicians span the ideological spectrum, from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford to former Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca, now mayor of suburban Vaughan, and left-leaning Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
So busy trying to placate drivers, these politicians ignore that speed cameras work. The hit in the wallet is sufficiently unpleasant that it convinces people to slow down. For evidence, consider that the number of tickets issued by any given camera typically goes down over time.
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
…
A person hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 kilometres an hour has a 90-per-cent chance of surviving. Increase the speed to 40 kilometres an hour, though, and the survival rate drops to 60 per cent. A person hit at 50 kilometres an hour has only a 20-per-cent chance of living.
Globe editorial: Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
Drivers and politicians who rail against them are ignoring the real issue and gambling with public safety
The Globe and Mail (www.theglobeandmail.com)
Problem with speed cameras is they don’t stop speeding. People know where they are and they slow down for before them and then speed up after. Also getting a ticket is weeks later. Getting pulled over is much more effective and people actually change their driving habits.
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They should be. But they aren’t.
Which is especially egregious with the terrible investment in public transportation. You want poor people to stop speeding? Give them a decent alternative to cars.You’re right, we definitely need better public transport.
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Problem with speed cameras is they don’t stop speeding. People know where they are and they slow down for before them and then speed up after. Also getting a ticket is weeks later. Getting pulled over is much more effective and people actually change their driving habits.
According to the article:
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
I’d love to see cops (or whatever) out enforcing speed limits, but for whatever reason, that doesn’t seem to happen. Until police start instantly enforcing limits, I’m fine with a technological fix.
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A spectre is haunting Canadian roads: the real prospect of actually having to pay a fine for not respecting the speed limit. As speed cameras proliferate, particularly in Ontario, some drivers are showing their displeasure. Many of the cameras have been vandalized and one in Toronto cut down six times.
It’s time for a deep breath.
Speed cameras shouldn’t disappear, they should multiply. The cameras are effective and, because their penalty is so easily avoided, they are fair.
…
In fact, a recent poll for CAA showed majority support among Ontarians for the cameras. Politicians who pander to the minority of drivers who hate them are gambling with public safety.
Those politicians span the ideological spectrum, from Ontario’s Progressive Conservative Premier Doug Ford to former Ontario Liberal leader Steven Del Duca, now mayor of suburban Vaughan, and left-leaning Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow.
So busy trying to placate drivers, these politicians ignore that speed cameras work. The hit in the wallet is sufficiently unpleasant that it convinces people to slow down. For evidence, consider that the number of tickets issued by any given camera typically goes down over time.
That effect has been further demonstrated by research from a hospital and university in Toronto. According to their findings, referenced in a recent city staff report, the proportion of vehicles speeding went down 45 per cent after cameras were installed near schools and in high-collision areas.
…
A person hit by a vehicle travelling at 30 kilometres an hour has a 90-per-cent chance of surviving. Increase the speed to 40 kilometres an hour, though, and the survival rate drops to 60 per cent. A person hit at 50 kilometres an hour has only a 20-per-cent chance of living.
Globe editorial: Sorry, speed cameras aren’t the problem
Drivers and politicians who rail against them are ignoring the real issue and gambling with public safety
The Globe and Mail (www.theglobeandmail.com)
effective city planning would be better like a lot better. Having environmental clues and enforcement techniques is way more effective as it prevents and not punishes. Person injured from speeding incident is not going to be saved by $500 or whatever fine. When driver physically feels unsafe crossing certain speed limit - there’s no reason to monitor or fine him/her. “More cameras” is a cheap brand bandaid that peels off two hours later. It is trying to save people “after the fact”, when it’s way too late
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From your link, it sounds like the camera wasn’t tricked at all and was working perfectly as intended, the city just modified the programming of a nearby traffic light to shorten the length of time the light was yellow so that more people technically ran red lights that the camera then recorded. That’s a completely different, yet related, thing.
Either way, I’m sure you get my point.
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Either way, I’m sure you get my point.
I don’t. All tools can be abused.
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effective city planning would be better like a lot better. Having environmental clues and enforcement techniques is way more effective as it prevents and not punishes. Person injured from speeding incident is not going to be saved by $500 or whatever fine. When driver physically feels unsafe crossing certain speed limit - there’s no reason to monitor or fine him/her. “More cameras” is a cheap brand bandaid that peels off two hours later. It is trying to save people “after the fact”, when it’s way too late
I completely agree. But we’ve got a bunch of existing roads, and we need to deal with the existing infrastructure. New roads should be built more intelligently (ideally prioritizing walking or cycling, and transit before single occupancy vehicles) to do exactly as you say.
