Ottawa committee approves new process to deal with red light and photo radar camera ticket disputes
Ottawa motorists soon won't be able to fight photo radar and red light camera tickets in provincial court, as the city starts down the road to implement a new system to deal with ticket complaints.
The finance and corporate services committee approved a plan for the city to implement an administrative penalty system for adjudicating parking and camera-based offences, with municipally appointed screening and hearing officers adjudicating ticket disputes. Coun. Matthew Luloff was the only councillor to oppose the plan.
Under the administrative penalty system, drivers who receive a photo radar or red light camera ticket can either pay the penalty or request a review by a screening officer. Following the decision by the screening officer, the offender can request a review by a hearing officer, who will be appointed by council. The decision of a hearing officer is final.
- Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
- The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App
Currently, a ticket for a red light or photo radar camera infraction is certified by a Provincial Offence Officer, and the ticket is mailed to the defendant plate holder. If the offender decides to challenge the ticket, they fight the ticket in provincial court.
Staff say the new administrative penalty system will see disputes heard within a few weeks or months, lower municipal costs by 35 per cent and increase the Provincial Offences Act courts capacity to focus on more serious offences. The provincial offences court will still deal with all Provincial Offences Act tickets outside of the parking and camera-based tickets.
Coun. Shawn Menard applauded the city for looking for ways to free up space within the provincial court.
"We've needed the APS for a long time in Ottawa. It has been hard to enforce some of those bylaw issues because of the provincial model that has existed," Menard told the committee.
While Luloff said he supports speeding up the ticket dispute process, he is concerned about moving the process out of the courts.
"I really don't want to do this at the expense of fairness. I don't like the idea of removing a level of appeal to a justice of the peace; I don't think that there's any replacement of that ability to appeal before a provincial justice of the peace," Luloff told councillors.
Ottawa plans to appoint 10 hearing officers per year, starting in 2024, 2025 and 2026, with a total of 30 hearing officers available five to 10 days per month to deal with tickets. Staff told councillors that a hearing officer would be someone with arbitration/mediation experience and a legal background.
The new administrative penalty system will be in place for parking tickets in the spring of 2025, while photo radar and red light camera tickets will be adjudicated under the new system in the winter of 2025.
The City of Ottawa forecasts more than one million tickets to be issued through the automated speed enforcement camera and red light camera programs this year, and 1.5 million tickets next year.
Toronto, Hamilton, Mississauga and Brampton have adopted an administrative penalty system for parking tickets.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
What weather experts say to expect this summer in Canada
Get ready to feel the heat, Canada. Weather experts are predicting more sunshine and warmer temperatures for the summer.
New COVID-19 subvariants become the dominant strains in Canada
More than four years after COVID-19 effectively shut down the world, two new variants of COVID-19 have become the dominant strains of the novel coronavirus in Canada.
Israel sends tanks into Rafah on raids amid Gaza-wide offensive
Israeli tanks mounted raids across Rafah in defiance of the World Court for a second day on Wednesday, after Washington said the assault did not amount to a major ground operation in the southern Gazan city that U.S. officials have warned Israel to avoid.
P.E.I. kiteboarder 'lucky to be alive' after shark attack in Turks and Caicos
A professional kiteboarder from P.E.I. says he has been seriously injured in a shark attack that occurred while he was snorkelling in the Turks and Caicos Islands last week.
'Unruly passenger' forces WestJet flight to make emergency landing in B.C.
A WestJet flight heading to Calgary had to make an emergency landing in northern B.C. Monday due to an incident involving an 'unruly passenger,' Mounties say.
Introducing peanut butter during infancy can help protect against a peanut allergy later on, new study finds
New evidence suggests that feeding children smooth peanut butter during infancy and early childhood can help reduce their risk of developing a peanut allergy even years later.
'It was hell': Israeli mother held hostage with her children describes 51 days in captivity
Hagar Brodutch, her three children and four-year-old neighbour were kidnapped by Hamas-led militants from their home in Kfar Aza, Israel on Oct. 7 and held for 51 days. They were released in November, but Brodutch says her thoughts are never far from those still being held in Gaza.
Jury in Trump's hush money case will begin deliberations after hearing instructions from the judge
Jurors in Donald Trump's hush money trial are expected to begin deliberations Wednesday after receiving instructions from the judge on the law and the factors they may consider as they strive to reach a verdict in the first criminal case against a former American president.
The double-level airplane seat is back. This time, there's a first-class version
It’s the airplane seat design that launched a thousand memes and kickstarted a media storm. And now the double-level seat is back – only this time, with a twist.