Mayor Cam Guthrie Chooses Speed Camera Revenue Tool Over Immediate Safety
- Wednesday, September 24th, 2025 - 4:37 pm
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Guelph Mayor Cam Guthrie continues to back the city’s automated speed enforcement (ASE) cameras, even as Premier Doug Ford moves to eliminate them province-wide and other municipalities are backing away.
The program in Guelph began in August 2023 with 12 cameras rotating through 30 km/h school zones. By January 2025, roughly 14,000 tickets had been issued worth $1.6 million. From January to July, another 6,100 tickets generated about $2.5 million, averaging $112 each.
Residents remain unconvinced. Community polling has shown a strong majority oppose the cameras, pointing out that they do nothing to physically slow cars in the moment. Tickets arrive long after violations occur, while children and pedestrians remain exposed. Cameras also operate outside school hours, strengthening the perception they function as revenue tools rather than safety measures.
Evidence supports those concerns. An American Journal of Public Health study found speed humps reduced child pedestrian injuries by more than 50 percent. Research from the United Kingdom showed vertical traffic calming cut collisions by 44 percent, compared with 22 percent for fixed cameras. Physical solutions such as raised crosswalks or narrowed lanes provide immediate safety, while cameras do not.
Other municipalities are acknowledging this reality. Vaughan council voted September 15 to cancel its ASE program, with Mayor Steven Del Duca saying fines created too heavy a burden on residents. In Orillia, Mayor Don McIsaac personally appealed to Ford to keep his city’s cameras, but the premier refused. “He said speed cameras will be gone. He didn’t say when, but it’s coming,” McIsaac admitted. Orillia is now preparing to remove its cameras despite strong local endorsement of their effectiveness.
Ford has been blunt, calling cameras a “cash grab” and promising legislation to outlaw them while supporting alternatives like speed bumps and digital display signs. Guthrie, however, continues to argue they should remain, putting himself at odds with the clear majority of residents.
For many in Guelph, the mayor’s stance represents a failure to listen. While other cities bow to public opinion and provincial direction, Guthrie is holding on to a program that has generated millions in fines but little evidence of immediate safety.
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