Speed cameras not a 'tax grab' if you 'go the damn speed limit,' deputy mayor says to Ford

London's deputy mayor is pushing back against Ontario Premier Doug Ford's plan to get rid of automated speed cameras.

Earlier this month, Ford told a group of reporters that he is against speed cameras and called them a "tax grab." He threatened to get rid of them if municipalities don't do it first, in step with a recent decision made by city council in Vaughan.

"I think the premier is offside, and he's listening to the wrong people," said deputy mayor Shawn Lewis. "Go the damn speed limit and it's not going to be a tax grab, because you won't get a ticket."

The speed limit in London's school zones is 40 km/h. The cameras, first introduced to London in 2021, detect vehicles driving above the posted speed limit and ticket plate owners.

There are seven mobile automated speed enforcement (ASE) units that move around to school zones in London where speeding as been identified as an issue, according to data provided from the city to CBC News. The units have so far been in 55 different locations since it was launched.

The city refers to the program as "revenue neutral." A financial breakdown shows that in 2024 it earned $105,088 from infraction payments after covering its own expenses.

The program has successfully had drivers improve their speeding habits in school zones, said Lewis.

"These things are working," he said. "We are seeing where these cameras are deployed, speed is decreasing. And when the cameras rotate out and move to a new school zone, the effect lingers."

The province provided the cameras to begin with, added Lewis, and the city is trying to find ways to get more added to its rotation. They are put up in London's elementary school zones because that's where road users, especially kids, are most vulnerable.

"If the province wanted to mandate this, they could," he said. "It is their legislation after all, that allows us to have these things in London. All our ASE revenue goes back into road improvements and road safety programs."

The Association of Municipalities of Ontario told Ford in a letter this week that there is real evidence the cameras improve road safety, including a July study from SickKids and Toronto Metropolitan University that found they reduced speeding by 45 per cent in Toronto.

Ford would have to find a way to make up for the city's lost revenue if he were to follow through, said Lewis. London could rely more on measures like big signs and flashing lights to address speeding, but then there would be no consequence for the behaviour.

Assigning a police officer to manage traffic in school zones would be fiscally irresponsible, he added.

"I think municipalities are open to that discussion," said Lewis, "but to simply say we should throw the baby out with the bathwater and get rid of [speed cameras] entirely...I think it's very short sighted."

Meanwhile, the city of Hamilton has announced plans to double down on its speed enforcement. A motion to add four more ASE cameras to its roster goes to its council Wednesday, in an effort to address long-standing concerns in its community about traffic and to make its streets safer.