Article content
Drivers beware: London is more than doubling the number of red-light cameras – to 25 from 10 – at intersections across the city. Municipal officials say they make our roads safer, and that the statistics back them up. LFP’s Beatriz Baleeiro looks both ways and drives ahead with the details:
FIRST THINGS FIRST
Let’s get to what drivers will really want to know: How much is a ticket? In Ontario, running a red light is a $325 fine, including a $60 victim surcharge. There are no demerit points associated with one because the ticket is sent to vehicle owners, who may not have been the driver at the time of the infraction.
Article content
WHAT’S SO SAFE ABOUT THEM?
In short, the more cameras, the less dangerous driving, Mayor Josh Morgan said in a statement. Mounted on traffic signals, they snap images of vehicles driving against a red and mail a ticket to the registered home of the corresponding licence plate. It’s not a pleasant surprise, but city officials say they help prevent the far more painful injuries that come from collisions: Since London first installed them in 2017:
- Collisions with injuries or death in the city are down 40 per cent.
- Broadside collisions at “signalized intersections” are down between eight and 11 per cent.
But intersection collisions remain an issue: City officials say 507 crashes involved a red light-running vehicle last year, roughly 10 per week.
HOW DO THEY WORK?
The fancier term for red light cameras is automated enforcement system. The cameras grab images of vehicles entering an intersection on a red light. The images are reviewed and a ticket is mailed to the person to whom the licence plate is registered. They’re crucial to safer driving in London, said city hall transportation director Doug MacRae.
Article content
WHERE ARE THE 15 NEW ONES LOCATED?
- Wharncliffe Road South and Commissioners Road
- Commissioners Road and Wonderland Road South
- Veterans Memorial Parkway and Dundas Street
- Wellington Road South and Exeter Road
- Fanshawe Park Road East and Adelaide Street North
- Fanshawe Park Road West and Aldersbrook Gate
- Richmond Street and Fanshawe Park Road
- Hamilton Road and Highbury Avenue North
- Oxford Street and Richmond Street
- Oxford Street East and Talbot Street
- Wharncliffe Road North and Oxford Street West
- Western Road and Sarnia Road
- Sarnia Road and Wonderland Road North
- Wharncliffe Road South and Southdale Road East
- Southdale Road West at Wonderland Road South
To read more about city hall’s campaign for increased road safety, click here.
Recommended from Editorial
Share this article in your social network
