Twenty new speed cameras coming to Mississauga by end of 2021

The City of Mississauga wants to put the brakes on speeders with the installation of 20 more automated speed cameras by the end of the year.

The motion to add the new cameras to the two installed earlier this year (currently located at Morning Star Drive and Sawmill Valley Drive) at a cost of $467,000 passed unanimously at a May 19 city council meeting.

“Far too many drivers are speeding in cities across Ontario and Mississauga is no exception. As a Vision Zero city, we are committed to preventing fatalities and injuries on our roadways,” said Mayor Bonnie Crombie.

“Today’s decision to expedite our ASE program is an important step forward and demonstrates our commitment as a Council to making our roads safer for everyone.”

Ward 9 Councillor Pat Saito, citing work City staff did a dozen years ago that led to new provincial legislation, said Mississauga “wrote the book on road safety” and lamented the fact the City has just two cameras while neighbouring Brampton has 48.

“The main goal of the program is to reduce speeding and the cameras will do that,” she said. “You can’t put a price on a life saved and this is one of those costs.”

Ward 8 Councillor Matt Mahoney agreed, and added that residents who call speed cameras a “cash grab” aren’t understanding how dangerous excessive speeding can be.

“I say we need to use every tool in our tool belt to slow people down. Speed is a major concern here,” he said. “I hope we don’t get one single ticket with this but it’s what we need to do.”

The program is being rolled out in phases in Mississauga. In phase one, cameras will be installed in newly-designated 30-kilometres per hour ‘school area community safety zones’ where speeding has proven to be a consistent problem. After the 90-day advance notice period is complete, the cameras will begin operating and charges will be issued to vehicles that exceed the posted speed limit.

The cameras will rotate to new locations on a monthly basis to help residents slow down drivers city-wide.

Colin Patterson, the City’s Supervisor, Road Safety & Traffic Management, said the plan is for each camera to have a 30-day deployment, “but we can be flexible” if speeding numbers in a location do not decline.

Before the cameras are moved, residents will see advance notice signs installed in their area.

“The location of the ASE cameras is not a secret. We want to make sure that residents know about this program because our goal is speed compliance – not to issue charges,” said Geoff Wright, Commissioner Transportation and Works. “Speed limits are not guidelines – they are the law – and when residents drive the speed limit, our streets are much safer for everyone.”

The cameras work by automatically capturing an image whenever a vehicle is detected to have exceeded the posted speed limit.

A provincial offences officer then reviews the image and issues a ticket. The ticket and a digital copy of the image are mailed to the registered plate holder within 30 days.

Ward 2 Councillor Karen Ras said the cameras are essential because there are “not enough police officers to be at every corner.”

“This program is doing what it’s supposed to achieve using technology,” she explained. “Right now (excessive) speed is a plague.”