Ottawa drivers who've been ignoring their photo radar tickets are leaving the city with a serious cash problem. New figures show the City of Ottawa is owed millions of dollars in outstanding fines from its automated speed enforcement (ASE) cameras, exposing a widening gap between how many tickets get issued and how many actually get paid.
A Growing Pile of Unpaid Tickets
Photo radar cameras have become a familiar sight across Ottawa in recent years, popping up near schools and in community safety zones as part of the city's push to slow down traffic and cut down on speeding-related collisions. The program has issued a steady stream of tickets since it expanded, but collecting on those tickets has proven to be a much bigger challenge than getting drivers to actually pay up.
According to the report, the outstanding total now sits in the millions, a number that's likely to raise eyebrows at City Hall given how often photo radar revenue gets cited as a funding source for road safety initiatives. When a large chunk of that expected revenue never actually materializes, it puts a dent in budget projections and raises questions about how aggressively the city is pursuing collection.
Why the Ottawa Angle Matters
For Ottawa residents, this isn't just an abstract accounting issue. Photo radar was sold to the public as a tool for making neighbourhoods safer, particularly around schools and playgrounds where speeding has long been a concern for parents and community associations. If a significant share of tickets go unpaid, it undercuts the deterrent effect the program is supposed to have — drivers who know enforcement is weak may simply factor an unpaid fine into the cost of speeding through their commute.
There's also a fairness question for Ottawa taxpayers. Photo radar enforcement and camera maintenance cost money, and that spending is at least partly justified by the fines the program is expected to bring in. A large unpaid balance means Ottawa is footing more of that bill than originally planned, money that could otherwise go toward roads, transit, or other city services.
What Happens Next
Cities across Ontario have wrestled with similar collection issues, since chasing down unpaid provincial offence fines often means navigating a slow-moving legal process, including plate denial programs and collections through the courts. Ottawa is expected to lean on existing tools, like blocking vehicle registration renewals for drivers with outstanding fines, to try to claw back some of what's owed.
In the meantime, the city faces pressure to explain how it plans to close the gap and whether the photo radar program's finances need a rethink. For Ottawa drivers who still have tickets sitting unpaid, the message from the city is likely to get louder: pay up, or risk losing the ability to renew your plates.
Source: CTV News
