Traffic cameras to target lead-footed drivers at 11 Mississauga speeding hot spots by Monday

Eleven speed enforcement cameras will be set up near schools at targeted areas across the city by Monday as Mississauga continues to roll out its campaign to slow down lead-footed drivers.  

City of Mississauga officials say that represents half of the full complement of 22 cameras they plan to have in place by December that will rotate regularly through school-area Community Safety Zones “where speeding has proven to be a persistent problem,” says the City. 

Launched July 5 using two cameras rotating to different parts of the city, the Automated Speed Enforcement (ASE) camera program has resulted in reduced speeds and increased compliance with speed limits on at least two local streets near school zones, the City says. 

Six additional cameras have now been deployed and are currently being tested and calibrated on site, according to the City, with another three of the devices to be set up today as the program expands.  

The City exceeded its target, by one, of wanting to get 10 cameras in place by Nov. 1. 

Locations of the speed-measuring devices, which are to be rotated among different speeding hot spots near schools in Mississauga, will continue to be made public by the City online.  

Numbers from the first month of the campaign show average speeds on Morning Star Dr. in Malton (between Lancaster Ave. and Netherwood Rd.) decreased by about 11 km/h while speeds on Sawmill Valley Dr. in Erin Mills (between Folkway Dr. and Grosvenor Place) were down by 9 km/h.  

Furthermore, the data shows, 41 per cent more motorists are following posted speed limits in that area of Morning Star Dr. while 28 per cent more drivers are doing the same on the identified section of Sawmill Valley Dr., which runs through a neighbourhood north of Burnhamthorpe Rd. and just east of Erin Mills Pkwy.   

Posted speed limits in both areas, which are school zones, is 30 km/h.  

The City says 495 tickets were issued at the first two ASE camera locations during the month-long campaign–298 at Morning Star Dr. and 197 at Sawmill Valley Dr.   

During that period, 55 repeat offenders received tickets, and the highest speed ticketed on Morning Star Dr. was 67 km/h while the highest on Sawmill Valley Dr. was 71 km/h.   

As the program moves forward, the City says advance notice signs will continue to be used to let residents know when and where ASE cameras will be installed.   

When a vehicle exceeds the posted speed limit in an ASE area, the camera captures an image. After that, a provincial offences officer reviews the image and issues a ticket. The ticket, including a digital copy of the image and an enlargement of the license plate, is mailed to the registered plate holder within 30 days of the offence.  

Tickets are issued to the owner of the vehicle regardless of who was driving. No demerit points will be issued and the registered owner’s driving record will not be impacted.  

“These cameras are making a difference; they are helping make our roads safer and raising awareness about the need to follow posted speed limits,” Geoff Wright, Mississauga’s commissioner of transportation and works, said earlier.