The Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) has expressed strong support for the continued use of automated speed enforcement cameras (ASE). They argue that these cameras are effective in reducing speeding, changing driver behavior, and making roads safer for everyone, including vulnerable road users like children. We talked with President of the Association of Chiefs of Police, Mark Campbell.
The OACP has urged Ontario Premier Doug Ford to reconsider his plan to eliminate these cameras provincewide, emphasizing that removing them would put pedestrians at risk. Campbell says the issue goes all the way back to 2021. Back then the traffic committee for the Association brought a recommendation to support the use of automated speed enforcement cameras as one tool.
The association’s position is backed by a July study from SickKids and Toronto Metropolitan University, which found that speed cameras led to a 45% reduction in speeding across Toronto. While Premier Doug Ford has dismissed automated speed enforcement (ASE) as a “cash grab” with little impact on road safety, the Ontario Association of Chiefs of Police (OACP) and several police leaders disagree. They view these cameras as an effective public safety measure that supports and enhances traditional traffic enforcement efforts, helping to reduce speeding and protect vulnerable road users.
He adds cameras are an effective tool amongst many that help deliver better road safety to communities.
