Saskatoon councillor wants to arm volunteers with radar guns to curb speeding
With the City of Saskatoon not lowering residential speed limits to 40 km/h, Ward 3 Coun. David Kirton proposes a Speed Watch program.
“Basically take Neighbourhood Watch and give them a radar gun,” said Kirton, standing on the busy corner of Diefenbaker and Centennial Drives in the city’s Pacific Heights neighbourhood.
Kirton said volunteers armed with a radar gun and a camera would monitor residential areas where they believe there’s a speeding problem.
Vancouver Police and RCMP detachments have also adopted Speed Watch programs.
“They would (capture) cars going by, if they catch someone speeding on the radar they take a picture of their license plate with the camera and send that into police,” he said.
From there Kirton said police would send a letter to the registered owner of the vehicle caught speeding and warn them they are being watched. If the vehicle is spotted speeding again, police may pay the registered owner a visit.
“I think that’s pretty powerful and I think a motorist speeding in a neighborhood is probably going to slow down if they know we’re watching them and the police know what’s happening,” Kirton said.
Speed Watch also gives police a better way to track where they need to enforce, Kirton said.
This week, Kirton put forward a motion during the city’s transportation committee asking the city’s administration to look into setting up a Speed Watch program.
The city would also consult with SGI to fund the radar detectors, cameras and high-visibility vests for volunteers.
Kirton said ideally the community associations would help recruit volunteers.
“A lot of us speed inadvertently, our feet get too heavy and that’s what those speed boards do. The same thing with Speed Watch, if your foot starts to get heavy and you get a letter from the police, hopefully you’ll slow down.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Prince William says wife Kate is 'doing well'
Prince William said on Friday his wife Kate was 'doing well' in a rare public comment about the Princess of Wales as she undergoes preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
BREAKING Canadian Blood Services apologizes to LGBTQ2S+ community for discriminatory blood donation policy
Canadian Blood Services issued an apology on Friday to the LGBTQ2S+ community for what it now admits was a harmful and discriminatory blood donation policy that prevented sexually active men who have sex with men and some trans people from donating blood and plasma.
BREAKING Toronto mayor hints that WNBA team is coming to the city, marking the first franchise in Canada
Toronto Mayor Olivia Chow says that she is hopeful an announcement could be made soon amid multiple reports that a WNBA team is coming to Toronto in 2026.
Magnitude 4.2 earthquake reported off Vancouver Island's west coast
A 4.2-magnitude earthquake was recorded west of Vancouver Island early Friday morning.
Ontario coroner to investigate death of man who suffered cardiac arrest while waiting in ER
A provincial coroner will be investigating the death of 68-year-old David Lippert, who suffered a cardiac arrest while waiting in a crowded emergency room in Kitchener, Ont.
'Irate male' assaulted Newfoundland officers with block of cheese, police say
Police in Newfoundland say patrol officers were assaulted Thursday by a "very irate male" wielding a block of cheese.
Average hourly wage in Canada now $34.95: StatCan
Average hourly wages among Canadian employees rose to $34.95 on a year-over-year basis in April, a 4.7 per cent increase, according to a Statistics Canada report released Friday morning.
This iconic Canadian song is turning 50
Andy Kim's 'Rock Me Gently' is marking a major milestone, as it celebrates its 50th anniversary.
From outer space? Sask. farmers baffled after discovering strange wreckage in field
A family of fifth generation farmers from Ituna, Sask. are trying to find answers after discovering several strange objects lying on their land.