Red-light cameras may be coming to Niagara
Regional staff putting together a report that will include road safety measures
Lead-footed drivers may want to think twice about beating the red light when they come to an intersection.
Regional staff will be looking for a green light from the politicians on the public works committee Tuesday to develop a business case to study the feasibility of bringing red-light cameras to Niagara.
The results and recommendations flowing from the study would form part of an overall Road Safety Plan for Niagara Region, and would be ready by the end of the 2019 calendar year.
A report to for the committee meeting Tuesday said about 20 per cent of reportable collisions on Niagara Regional roads in 2016 and 2017 were angle collisions – where one vehicle crosses the path of an adjoining vehicle at an intersection — with a 1.2 per cent increase in 2018. In total, there were 947 collisions at Niagara Regional intersections from 2008 to 2017.
The province has had legislation on the books since 2000 allowing municipalities to operate red-light-camera systems, and studies have shown that the number of angle collisions decreased in municipalities that adopted
red-light cameras with fatalities down by 40 per cent and injuries by 37 per cent. The number of severe injuries from rear-end collisions are reduced by 14 per cent.
Studies also show that the cameras impact driver behaviour at intersections that don’t have the devices. Those intersections see a 10.7 per cent reduction in overall collisions and a 22.7 per cent reduction in severe crashes.
The report will include a costbenefit analysis and will set out targets, policies, and action plans to guide council to create a safer road system.
Funding isn’t addressed in the report. That will come later.
The report tells councillors that collisions resulting from red-light running tend to be more severe than other intersection collisions because they usually involve at least one vehicle travelling at higher speeds and tradition police enforcement of redlight infractions at intersections come with high operational costs.
The system works by taking photographs of vehicles that approach a red light at or above a set speed, which triggers the camera.
The first photo shows the red signal and the vehicle before entering an intersection. The second photo shows the red signal and the vehicle in the intersection.
If the images clearly show a red-light violation, then an infraction notice is mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle.
Like parking tickets, the infraction notices are the responsibility of the vehicle owner, and no demerit points are involved. Vehicles in the intersection when the red light comes on are not photographed and are not subject to a violation.
A red-light camera costs about $30,000 annually to operate. That includes the lease, installation, and operational costs of each camera.
The program could be administered through a cost-sharing agreement with Toronto’s Joint Processing Centre at about $6,000 annually per camera.
The joint processing centre handles the photos and requests vehicle plate ownership information from the Ministry of Transport.
The public works committee will also consider Automated Speed Enforcement (better known as photo radar) in school zones.
That project would be in partnership with the Ministry of Transportation, the Ministry of the Attorney General and Ontario’s Traffic Council.
The provincial goal is to set up a consistent program for photo radar across Ontario with a target date of fall 2019 for legislative approval.
Staff will bring back a report that will include terms and conditions for an approved vendor who will supply, install, operate, and maintain the system throughout Niagara Regional roads for a five-year term.
Statistics show fatal and serious injury collisions on Niagara Regional roads increased by 9.31 per cent from 2015 to 2016, and Niagara’s numbers were 20 per cent higher than similar jurisdictions in Ontario.