Traffic Section
Enforcing the rules of the road is a priority for the Ottawa Police Service
In 2002, we received over 18,000 calls for police response to collisions. Over 11,000 resulted in significant property damage. Our 2002 Public Survey saw residents identify speeding and aggressive driving as two of the top three priorities. We know that with an integrated approach, we will achieve our goal to reduce deaths and injuries on the roadways based on the foundation of the '3Es': enforcement, education, and engineering.
Quick Facts:
- There are about 700 Highway Traffic Act laws (i.e. speeding, dangerous driving) and roughly 300 by-laws (i.e. prohibited turns from 7 a.m. to 9 a.m.).
- Ottawa's roads are already among the safest in Canada with approximately one million drivers in the City of Ottawa daily.
- 95% of drivers do not comply with all the rules of the road.
- Out of the one million drivers that drive in the City of Ottawa daily, many adults and seniors in sedans, minivans and sport utility vehicles are speeding, which sends a message to youth in those cars that speeding, and other dangerous driving habits, are acceptable. Parents are their children's first driving instructor(s) - use those first sixteen years as an opportunity to teach our youth the rules of the road and how to stay safe on our streets and highways.
Issues related to road safety have been recognized as important at the international, national, provincial and municipal levels. This has increased the need for:
- cooperation among road safety agencies in pursuit of common objectives;
- coordination of effort to achieve those objectives; and
- developing lines of communication, measurement tools and reporting mechanisms to help assess effectiveness and identify emerging road safety trends.
Find information on...
| True or False: Party hosts may be responsible to ensure that guests don't drive impaired. When we asked Ottawa: 169 people said 'True' while 53 people said 'False' and 7 were not sure. Did you know? In December 2009, nearly 1,500 charges were laid by Ottawa Police for speeding and impaired driving. |
Remember: Road Safety Starts with You!
