After back-to-back fatal collisions on Stoney Trail, where speed was considered a factor earlier this summer, the Calgary Firefighters Association is calling on the provincial government to introduce stronger consequences for excessive speeding.
According to the CFA, the union representing local firefighters, Stoney Trail has become a “hotspot for stunt driving” and excessive speeds, resulting in traumatic scenes for first responders.
“These are scenes we don’t want to respond to,” said Calgary Firefighters Association president Jamie Blayney. “They sit with first responders.”
As of September, officers have issued 618 tickets for speeding over 50km/h over the posted speed limit, including five in one night on Stoney Trail last month. Last year, officers issued 704 tickets.
In Alberta, drivers caught going more than 51 km/h over the speed limit receive a mandatory court appearance, but the firefighters’ association noted that those drivers can continue to drive until their court date.
Calgary’s firefighters are now calling on the province to change legislation to allow law enforcement to either immediately impound a vehicle and suspend the licence when a driver is caught speeding excessively, noting that Alberta is the only province without such legislation.
“It’s time to put the tools in place to stop the speeding that’s going on on Stoney Trail,” Blayney said.
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To help get their message across, the firefighters’ union brought together four independent candidates running for city council whose wards include Stoney Trail.
Jennifer Wyness, the incumbent candidate in Ward 2, said speeding has been a concern since the province removed photo radar enforcement from city streets.
“Everytime this conversation comes up, I think more and more Calgarians realize that photo radar wasn’t a cash cow, it was a swear jar that actually saved lives,” she told reporters at a joint news conference on Tuesday.
The issue is all too familiar for Andrew Yule, running as an independent in Ward 3, who said he often hears speeding vehicles on Stoney Trail.
“It’s a concern for many residents,” he said. “I’ve got driver-aged children in my household that are just learning how to drive and it is scary to think about them going out onto (Stoney Trail) when all this speeding is happening.”
Ward 9 independent candidate Harrison Clark said he is also hearing from residents who live near Stoney Trail along 17 Avenue S.E.
“You’re seeing two competing interests: folks that are using it like an autobahn to get to where they want to go and the individual just trying to get to the grocery store in their neighbourhood,” he said.
Ward 6 independent candidate John Pantazopoulos noted the excessive speeding on Stoney Trail is a unifying issue among the candidates, despite their differing platforms and beliefs.
“I think it’s one thing the next council will be able to do is unify around things that make sense for Calgarians,” he said. “The fact that we’re all here as independents coming together towards a common goal says a lot about this campaign and what Calgarians want from their next councillors.”
In an interview with Global News, Alberta Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen said it is “reassuring” that candidates in the race are talking about the need for “more cops and not just machines” when it comes to enforcing speed on city streets.
He added the province “constantly” reviews the Traffic Safety Act to determine if changes to penalties are required.
“It’s something we are looking into when it comes to the Traffic Safety Act to see if there’s higher demerits, or a higher fine or other measures that can coincide with deterring people from speeding and unsafe speeds,” Dreeshen said.
Dreeshen said, “Time will tell” if changes are made to the legislation.
However, for the Calgary Firefighters Association, the hope is that the next city council elected on Oct. 20 can help advocate for the province to make the changes they feel will save lives.
“We’re going to have a new council in a week,” Blayney said. “We’re hoping that with our partnership with them that we can advocate the province to put in some real tools to keep Calgarians, as well as police, fire and EMS, safe while we’re dealing with these incidents.”
