Guelph city council to consider lowering speed limits, installing speed cameras

Guelph city council is set to discuss the idea of lowering speed limits across the city and whether to use speed cameras.

The topic is scheduled to come up at a meeting on July 5 with staff recommending reducing speeds in 48 Guelph neighbourhoods to 40 km/h from 50 km/h.

Council will also consider reducing speeds on all streets downtown to 40 km/h, excluding Carden and Wilson streets which are already at 30 km/h.

Staff also suggests reducing speed limits on 12 collector and arterial roads by 10 km/h, including sections of Clair Road West, Gordon Street, College Avenue, Eastview Road, Wellington Street and Woolwich Street.

Speed limits in school zones currently posted as 30 km/h and flashing 40 km/h zones would stay the same and be designated as community safety zones where speeding fines are doubled.

Along with reducing speeds across Guelph, city hall is calling on council to strengthen enforcement with speed cameras.

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“We heard loud and clear from the Guelph community that they want to see lower speeds in areas with vulnerable road users and more enforcement of speeding,” said Steven Anderson, the city’s manager of transportation engineering.

“Reducing speed limits on selected roads, creating community safety zones and introducing automated speed enforcement will improve road safety and reduce collision severity in our city.”

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The Automated Speed Enforcement program would be placed in community safety zones and by schools.

If council gives the green light to all of the recommendations, staff will start reducing speed limits in 2022 and the cameras would be operational by 2023.

The city plans to have two mobile cameras that would rotate to different roads every couple of months.

The cost to reduce speed limits would be $300,000 while the annual $120,000 to operate the cameras would be offset by fines, the city said.

The report and recommendations going to city council can be found on the city of Guelph’s website.

“We’re working towards a strategy to eliminate all traffic fatalities and severe injuries while increasing safe, healthy, equitable mobility for all,” Anderson said.

“The changes we’ve proposed will help us get there.”

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