Drivers who zip through stop signs could wind up photographed and penalized afterward if one councillor has his way.At a council meeting on June 23, Coun. Wade Bearchell reported back from an Olds and District Community Policing Society meeting where the idea of installing stop sign cameras at intersections was floated.“I don't know what the support is. That would be a decision made at council,” Bearchell said after a July 14 council meeting.“Personally, I'm in favour of it only because I know that it's very difficult to enforce some of these things and we do have (a) major highway going through town with Highway 27 and our residents are often concerned at the rate of speed and some of the near misses that we've had throughout our community.”The prospect of installing stop sign cameras is something Staff Sgt. Joe Sangster, commander of the RCMP detachment in Olds, would want to look into before throwing his support behind it.“I'd have to do some more research and I'd have to see if they work or don't work. See if there are other communities that have those in their community and if it's making a difference,” Sangster said.So far, the idea is still at an embryonic stage. However, according to Bearchell, it isn't a new one.“The discussion is just at the early stages. We have had presentations in the past from companies that do photo radar and if I look back, that was probably three, four years ago and council did not support it that time,” Bearchell said.“But at that time we had a different situation in our community. We had the Sheriffs, we did more radar through our RCMP and our community. We just don't really see that anymore because their manpower is really, really stretched and we no longer have the Sheriffs in our community.”Bearchell said traffic enforcement is difficult because the RCMP in town are stretched thin.Sangster on the other hand, does not agree with that assessment.“Traffic enforcement is something we do on a pretty regular basis. It's one of the priorities for my detachment and the guys are writing on average 150 to 175 tickets a month and I think that's sufficient,” he said.Most complaints received by the RCMP are about speeding, with one problem area being at the four-way stop on 57 Avenue, Sangster said.He added that while some violations still occur, the problem is being addressed, pointing out that Olds does not see many collisions with injuries.“When we do get time, we definitely do traffic enforcement but there are times when our guys are tied up with calls and calls for service and that definitely takes priority.”[email protected]
