Government considering photo radar, red light cameras on Island roads

The minister of transportation and infrastructure says his department is looking at how traffic enforcement tools like photo radar and red light cameras could be implemented on P.E.I.

James Aylward told the legislature Thursday that he hopes to bring an amendment to P.E.I.'s Highway Traffic Act forward during the fall sitting.

"We can debate it here," he said. "Put the measures in place, put the infrastructure in placethat will make our roads safer for all Islanders."

The province currently works with municipalities on controlling throughway traffic and installs enforcement tools like speed bumps or radar speed signs.

'We don't always want to be punitive'

Aylward said a need for more strict tools continues to come up with the Federation of Municipalities.

"Charlottetown I think first came forward sort of asking about it in 1989. I used to live in Calgary and Calgary had the photo radar well in place there," he said.

"We have other measures that we put in place and we want to try to educate Islanders, to educate drivers. We don't always want to be punitive."

Excessive speeding was raised in the legislature last year. Aylward said they are continuing to notice that some Islanders are speeding intentionally while others are just not paying enough attention.

He said this is the case with many areas that have adopted the radar speed signs, which flash when a driver goes over the speed limit.

"What we're finding now is people are really used to them and they just don't really pay attention to them as much," he said.

The department still has some things to sort out, like how the tools and ticketing systems would be implemented in various municipalities, some with their own police forces and others that rely on the RCMP.

The new tools, should the legislation be amended, may also first be used as a pilot.

"More for information purposes for the first couple of months or something like that. Send the summary notice out with the attached photo of the licence plate, but no fine attached just to sort of wake people up to this," he said.

"Then if it continues, certainly we would have to look at other measures."

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