Advertisement

Ontario's possible plan for slower speed limits faces a bumpy road ahead

Ontario's possible plan for slower speed limits faces a bumpy road ahead

The Ontario government is currently considering reducing speed limits in residential areas as part of a plan to protect pedestrians in the case of automobile accidents.

In many ways, that debate is a unique one. In other ways it is well-debated territory that, in most previous cases, has fallen on the side of slower speeds for the sake of safety.

According to CBC News, the potential shift would make the limit in areas where no speed limit is posted 40 km/h. Default speed limits in Ontario are currently 50 km/h.

"It makes a big difference, we live in denser communities, cars are getting faster, our population numbers are much higher now,” said Community Safety Minister Yasir Naqvi.

"Scientific research has shown us that even a reduction by 10 kilometres increases the likelihood of a person surviving (a collision) and reduces injuries as well.”

That claim is backed up by a 2010 coroner’s inquest. And in 2012, Toronto’s chief medical officers recommended the city cut speed limits by as much as 20 km/h.

The report, Road to Health: Improving Walking and Cycling in Toronto, suggested the speed reduction would prevent about 100 pedestrian deaths per year and would directly save the city’s economy $62 million, with a far greater indirect economic benefit.

Considering the frustration that surrounds commuting and transit in large urban areas, support for speed reduction is rarely unanimous. And in Ontario’s case, one big-city mayor has already laughed the conversation away.

Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens has already dismissed the idea of a speed reduction in Ontario, calling it “ludicrous,” and said the reduction will never happen. It would be the first provincially-mandated default speed limit of less than 50 km/h. Yet, there have been several Canadian municipalities to take the slow road to safety.

Victoria implemented a similar speed reduction last year – and has previously urged the Union of B.C. Municipalities to bring the motion up provincially.

Ottawa councillor Tobi Nussbaum campaigned on the idea to reduce residential speed limits, and won.

Calgary has not yet reduced its speed limit, but there is a concerted campaign to do just that and last year the city’s transportation chief said the idea of a 40 km/h limit has “merit.”

Several major international cities have reduced or are considering reducing speed limits, including New York, San Francisco and London.

The major argument in most, if not all cases, is safety. Studies have consistently found, perhaps not surprisingly, that low-speed pedestrian collisions are far less frequently fatal.

One study out of the U.S. found that nine out of 10 pedestrians survive a collision with a car travelling 20 mph (or 32 km/h), while just one in ten survive a collision at 40 mph (or 64 km/h).

However, such changes haven’t been unanimous. In 2013, Winnipeg rejected lower speeds on residential streets, citing studies that found drivers select their speeds based on road conditions, not speed limit signs.

The report also notes that cities with recently-reduced speeds, including Edmonton and Montreal, had not seen a significant drop in average speeds, the Winnipeg Free Press reports.

Winnipeg has, however, recently reduced speeds in school zones to 30 km/h.

A speed zone study recently conducted by the Nova Scotia Department of Transportation and Infrastructure Renewal suggested that “Improperly set speed limits, particularly those set too low, can disconnect the actual safety of a facility from the perception of security that users have.”

Not surprisingly, there has been an equal measure of campaigns to raise speed limits, though those tend to focus on multi-lane highways. Last year, an Ontario citizen’s group petitioned to have the 400-series highways increased to 120 km/h or 130 km/h.

The group, Stop100.ca, argued that most Ontario drivers already go those speeds. On top of that, scores of jurisdictions have similar speed limits and have safety records similar or better than Ontario.

The group’s website notes that when Montana threw out its 120 km/h speed limit in 1995 and operated without a limit until 1999, it saw no increase in fatalities.

Again, British Columbia appears to be ahead of the curve on this topic. Following a year-long study into driving behaviour and conditions, the province agreed to adjust speed limits on 1,300 kilometres of provincial highway – about 15 per cent of the system. In most cases, the decision was to increase speeds by 10 km/h.

Highway speed limits are an issue separate from that of residential speed limits. One is a matter of divided lanes, extended sight lines and absence of pedestrians. City driving is the opposite.

And many cities are beginning to appreciate that lower limits means safer streets.