Watson unveils campaign’s traffic plank

In response to what he says is the No. 1 issue he faces at voters’ doors, Mayor Jim Watson has unveiled a wide-ranging plan to make Ottawa’s roads safer for pedestrians, cyclists and drivers.

Watson told reporters Sunday that, if he’s re-elected, he will work with city council over the next four years to hire an additional 75 police officers, increase the budget for traffic-calming measures, introduce 20 new red-light cameras at high-risk intersections, add 40 more crossing guards, and test photo radar in school zones.

Watson said he would recommend that 15 of the officers be dedicated exclusively to the enforcement of traffic and speed violations.

“Like most residents, I believe that making our roads and our communities safer should be a guiding principle of anyone seeking political office,” Watson said in making the announcement at his Bank Street campaign headquarters Sunday. “As I go door to door, the No. 1 issue continues to be traffic speed in residential neighbourhoods and traffic volume.”

A recent police enforcement blitz in the Ottawa school zones highlighted the problem, Watson said. That weeklong safety campaign resulted in 540 driving infractions, including 358 charges for speeding and 59 for distracted driving. Three drivers were charged with stunt driving.

“This kind of behaviour has to be stopped,” he said, “and the best way to do it, quite frankly, is to hit drivers in the pocketbook.”

To that end, Watson wants the city’s high-risk school zones to be designated as “community safety zones,” a designation under the Highway Traffic Act that allows for fines to be doubled.

The City of Ottawa now has 54 red-light cameras, which together generated more than $5 million last year in ticket revenue. (The fine is $260 plus a $5 service fee and $60 victim surcharge.)

According to city statistics, Ottawa has experienced a 50-per-cent reduction in the number of right-angled collisions — the “T-bone collision” — since the introduction of red-light cameras.