More than 60 per cent of drivers are speeding through school zones this summer at former photo radar locations across Ottawa, with the average speed of vehicles 7 km/h to 13 km/h faster than one year ago, according to data. The City of Ottawa continues to collect speed data at the eight original automated speed enforcement camera locations, nine months after the Ontario government banned the cameras on provincial roads. New statistics show between 18 per cent and 36 per cent of drivers were following the speed limit at the eight locations in August, down from between 18 per cent and 48 per cent compliance in July and 20 per cent and 52 per cent in June. In August 2025, compliance with the posted speed limit ranged between 83 and 93 per cent at the eight locations. Only 18 per cent of drivers were following the posted speed limit at the former photo radar camera locations on Longfields Drive and on Bayshore Drive this month, while 22 per cent of drivers complied with the speed limit on Meadowlands Drive. According to the city, 10.5 per cent of drivers on Bayshore Drive were observed “high-end speeding” in August, which is at least 15 km over the speed limit. The data says the average speed observed at the Bayshore Drive camera location was 47 km/h this month, up from 34 km/h in August 2025. The photo radar camera location on Smyth Road, down the street from CHEO and the Ottawa Hospital, had a compliance rate of 36 per cent in August, down from 48 per cent of drivers following the speed limit in July. The average observed speed on Smyth Road was 53 km/h in August, up from 42 km/h in August 2025. The city was operating 60 photo radar cameras when the Ontario government ordered all cameras to be turned off, with plans to install another 24 cameras. A total of 1,143,240 speeding tickets were issued through Ottawa’s automated speed enforcement camera program between July 2020 and November 2025, including 279,595 tickets in 2025 and 383,830 tickets in 2024. The City of Ottawa will be installing traffic calming measures and signage at all former photo radar locations. Compliance with the speed limit A look at the percentage of drivers complying with the posted speed limit at the eight original photo radar locations and the average speed of drivers at the camera locations. Data courtesy City of Ottawa Open Data. Longfields Drive Innes Road Bayshore Drive Katimavik Road Watters Drive Ogilvie Road Smyth Road Meadowlands Drive
