Mayor Gondek slams province after deadly crashes, says photo radar ban costing lives

A series of traffic collisions in Calgary this week has intensified the mayor’s criticism of the province’s decision to eliminate photo radar enforcement.

Mayor Jyoti Gondek says a hike in the number of pedestrians injured on city streets has to be addressed, citing a string of recent incidents where speed was a factor in crashes.

She cited a deadly rollover, a hit-and-run of a 16-year-old and a crash that injured an on-duty paramedic as reasons to bring back photo units.

“We know that the leading cause of traffic accidents is speed,” she says. “We are now seeing the consequences of the province’s decision to take away photo radar.”

Former police chief Mark Neufeld argued photo radar was a way to improve road safety, but Alberta’s transportation minister Devin Dreeshen called it a cash cow.

“It was never a cash grab. It was always designed to be a life-saving tool,” said Gondek on Wednesday.

In a statement, Dreeshen says they are investing in community safety initiatives under their Traffic Safety Fund and encourage cities to implement meaningful traffic-calming solutions like speed tables, flashing signs, and public education.

He did not say whether they would allow more photo radar.

The province’s new rules ban photo radar on numbered provincial highways and connectors, restricting it only to school, playground, and construction zones. Intersection safety devices in Alberta are also being limited to red light enforcement only, ending what is commonly known as “speed on green” tickets.

Municipalities are able to request additional radar locations in certain high-collision areas “on an exceptional basis,” which the province could choose to approve. Those exceptions would be subject to an audit every two years.