Police oppose photo radar cameras at pedestrian crosswalks proposal

By: Aldo Santin

http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Police-oppose-photo-radar-came...

The city councillor who believes pedestrian crosswalks are unsafe said he is disappointed with the recommendation from Winnipeg Police opposing his proposal to install photo radar cameras at pedestrian corridors.

Coun. Ross Eadie (Mynarski) said he remains convinced that measures have to be taken to make pedestrian corridors safe for pedestrians.

"If we’re not going to have cameras (at pedestrian corridors), then we better have more enforcement," Eadie said. "We’ve just been lucky there haven’t been more fatalities."

A WPS report to the Winnipeg Police Board recommends no action be taken on Eadie’s suggestion, citing a lack of pedestrian fatalities, the expense involved, and the unwillingness of the Selinger government to expand the use of photo radar cameras.

The report found only one pedestrian fatality at a pedestrian corridor – on Henderson Highway in 2011.

"We don’t measure the near-misses and there are a lot of them," Eadie said. "I take my life into my hands every time I cross at a pedestrian corridor on Main Street because drivers are not obeying the rules.

"The residents in my ward want something done about it."

The report, which will be presented to the police board at its meeting Friday morning, says only one community in North America – Washington, DC – employs photo radar cameras at crosswalks.

The DC cameras went into operation in November and the report says no conclusive data exists at this time to support a claim they are effective at improving pedestrian safety.

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aldo.santin@freepress.mb.ca