Calgary council approves using $28 million from reserves to plug hole in police budget

Calgary city council has agreed to spend $28 million from the city's Fiscal Stability Reserve to make up for a shortfall in the Calgary Police Service (CPS) budget. 

The shortfall is the result of revenue loss brought on by new provincial rules limiting the use of photo radar, resulting in declining automated enforcement ticket revenues.

"We have made a lot of investments into public safety over the last few years and we can't ease our foot off that pedal," said Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek. 

"We have made a commitment to Calgarians that we will ensure they live in a safe city and part of doing that is making sure that the police budget is properly funded."

The Alberta government has pledged to review every photo radar ticketing site in the province, with the expectation to slash the number of camera locations by 70 per cent. 

On Tuesday, city council agreed to rethink how it funds the police, to avoid an over-reliance on uncertain ticket revenue. 

"With the city moving towards funding [police] through a tax base, it allows police to focus on safety without having to use revenue as a driver," said Ward 7 Councillor Terry Wong, who sits on the Calgary Police Commission board. 

A $28-million shortfall would have put around 61 police positions at risk, CPS said.

"One of the things we did not want to do, given where we are right now and the explosive population growth in the city, is to shut down the hiring," said Calgary Police Chief Mark Neufeld, adding that initially CPS did have to freeze hiring. 

Photo radar shouldn't be 'cash cow,' provincial government argues

The Alberta government has called photo radar a "cash cow," used with a focus on revenue rather than safety. 

"It was never supposed to be the main source of funding for policing in Edmonton and Calgary, or any municipality in the province," said Alberta Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen last month, after CPS announced the revenue shortfall. 

"Photo radar and the revenue from it was always supposed to be about traffic safety." 

Before its crackdown on photo radar, Alberta had 2,200 approved photo radar sites — more than any other province, according to the province. 

A city administration report to council says the number of tickets issued and traffic fine revenue are already down, with more changes on the way.

Starting April 1, photo radar use will be restricted to school, playground and construction zones, and inspection safety devices used to ticket speeding will be limited to red light enforcement only.

The province said municipalities can request additional photo radar locations on an "exceptional basis" by providing a business case explaining why the technology is needed.

CPS plans to put forward a list of intersections for that consideration this spring.

"What we're hoping for is that, because we already have data and we'll be collecting further data, that we'll be able to make really good cases for high-traffic collision areas and needing to have those areas monitored," said Calgary Police Commission Chair Amtul Siddiqui.

Approximately two-thirds of Calgary's injury collisions occur on higher-speed roads, city administration said, adding that restricting photo radar use removes a traffic safety tool police can use on these routes.

Calgary Police issued more than 200,000 automated enforcement tickets in 2024.