ICBC won’t get speed camera revenues

Drivers who get caught speeding by B.C.’s upgraded intersection cameras won’t have their fines go toward keeping car insurance rates low.

Attorney General David Eby said Wednesday the revenue from speeding cameras will be shared with municipalities to fund road safety programs, and not kept by the Insurance Corp. of B.C.

That’s despite a recommendation by an outside consultant that ICBC get the money and use it to drive down premium increases.

“This red-light camera initiative is not a revenue-generation piece for ICBC. It’s not going to be creating money that will help close the financial gap at ICBC,” Eby said to reporters after making a speech at a Surrey Board of Trade meeting.

“Where revenues from tickets go is to local government, after the costs of administration are deducted, and we’re hopeful to work with local government to use that money to improve road safety further, to invest that money in infrastructure in the city to reduce collisions because that will create a virtuous circle for everybody.”

B.C. collects revenue from tickets for speeding and other traffic offences, and after deducting costs, distributes it to municipalities.

Eby’s comments appear to contradict public statements by Solicitor General Mike Farnworth earlier this week. He mused about possible changes to the revenue-sharing program that would let the province keep a larger share of new speeding camera tickets.

ICBC is facing a $1.3-billion loss for the year ending March 31, due to increases in crashes, claims and legal fees. The losses threaten the provincial budget, and Eby has launched several reforms, including $5,500 caps on pain and suffering claims for minor injuries and penalizing bad drivers with higher rates.

This month, Eby announced the government would convert 140 red-light intersection cameras to also take pictures of vehicles that who speed through intersections on both red and green lights. The province has not said what speed will trigger a camera.