The Alberta government will soon be rolling out a new campaign targeting stunt drivers and excessive speeders. There have been 22 deadly crashes in Edmonton so far this year compared to 16 at the same time last year. After the province introduced new rules earlier this year, Edmonton was forced to limit photo radar use to school, playground and construction zones. Edmonton city councillor Michael Janz says advertising doesn’t go far enough and more enforcement is needed on the roads. He says the province is playing politics. “We don’t need more posters. We don’t need snazzy radio ads. What we need is enforcement,” Janz told media on Tuesday. “The fact that the minister has taken critical tools away from law enforcement agencies, that they’ve been playing politics with this issue, is unacceptable.” Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen says the province is working with law enforcement to identify times and locations where stunt speeding takes place. He says reports from law-abiding drivers will help identify those trouble spots. “A lot of these racers, speeders or excessive speeders would have license plate covers or spray that they would put on their license plate, which would make photo radar completely ineffective,” Dreeshan told CTV News Edmonton on Tuesday. One political analyst questions whether a campaign will be enough to deter those who already take measures to conceal their identity when they drive dangerously. “It looked like the government was getting less strict about enforcing things like speeding, and now it wants to get more strict with regards to enforcement,” Lori Williams, a political scientist at Calgary’s Mount Royal University, told CTV News Edmonton. “It would be important, I think, to message more clearly not just that this is dangerous and problematic, but that there’s going to be more effective enforcement.” Dreeshen said the province is working on making sure there is physical enforcement on major roadways. He said the new campaign will run for two to three weeks, after which the province will evaluate its effectiveness.
