Promising results from installed red light cameras (RLCs) has prompted Durham staff to recommend the doubling of RLCs in the region.
Durham Regional Council was recommended to participate in Toronto’s purchasing of RLC services.
Priority Safety Measure
The Strategic Road Safety Action Plan (SRSAP) has found that RLC is a priority safety measure for addressing intersection collisions.
Currently there is an average of 1,000 severe (i.e., fatal and injury) collisions occurring annually at intersections in Durham Region.
It’s hoped that RLCs could reduce and ultimately eliminate, crash-related human trauma attributed to this high-risk driving behaviour.
Operational Cameras
Regional Council approved the installation of 12 cameras at locations across Durham Region in September 2019. All sites have been operating since December 2020.
The before-and-after analysis completed for the 12 intersections noted a reduction in fatal and injury collisions following the installation of RLCs.
Angle-type collisions, which tend to result in more critical outcomes for road users, decreased by around 48 per cent. While less severe rear-end collisions increased by about 32 per cent. The report stated that they believe “the reduction in angle collisions represents a meaningful safety benefit”.
Regional staff are currently conducting a more detailed investigation of the existing RLC sites to confirm this countermeasure is the best way to promote road safety at intersections.
Expanding The Number of RLCs
The report stated that the “promising initial results suggest sufficient merit exists to justify continued use of this road safety countermeasure and to expand the number of installations in Durham Region”.
As such, it was recommended that the region inform Toronto that it wishes to participate in the city’s procurement of RLC services, with a provision to expand the program from the current 12 camera locations to a maximum of 24.
Regional staff will prepare a subsequent report for regional council to seek approval to participate in the contract once the city completes the procurement process.
Durham Region’s current contract with the RLC processing provider Jenoptik, is scheduled to expire on December 31.
Toronto RFP
In anticipation, Toronto is preparing a Request for Proposal to secure a new vendor, which may take a few months. As an interim measure, Toronto may enter a ‘bridge contract’ with the existing vendor to minimize potential service disruptions.
To that end, Toronto has reached out to Durham and inquired whether the region wishes to participate in their new RLC contract.
As a result, the Works Committee Recommended:
- That the City of Toronto be informed that the Regional Municipality of Durham wishes to participate in the City of Toronto’s procurement of Red-Light Camera services, with a provision to expand the program from the current 12 camera locations to a maximum of 24 camera locations.
- That Regional Council delegate authority to the Commissioner of Works, Regional Solicitor, and Regional Chair to enter into any necessary agreements required to continue the current Red-Light Camera program in the interim