Kitchener bylaw will now ticket drivers $75 after 3 minutes of idling

A new anti-idling bylaw in Kitchener will see drivers ticketed if they keep their motors running, without moving, for three minutes.

City council passed the new bylaw Monday. It makes exceptions for extreme weather conditions, such as when the temperature inside a vehicle is above 27 C or below 5 C.

The fine has been set at $75.

Kitchener is the last of the tri-cities to implement an anti-idling bylaw. Waterloo also has a three-minute anti-idling bylaw; Cambridge limits idling to one minute.

Kitchener Coun. Margaret Johnston said she was approached by a resident who was upset about trucks idling near her home and that's when Johnston realized the city didn't have an anti-idling bylaw.

Council initially passed a motion to ask staff to do a fulsome study into the issue, to see what works and what doesn't in other municipalities.

On Monday, staff returned with the bylaw, which council passed.

Johnston says the bylaw is "really a great opportunity to educate people."

"We're not always going to be able to catch people and frankly that, to me, isn't really the impetus behind this because bylaw would have to observe people idling for three minutes," she said, noting the city is now planning a robust education campaign.

"If we can make people think about how their actions are contributing to climate change, that, to me, is the most important piece and to have them think about what those actions mean and change those," she said.

Johnston noted that the city has declared a climate emergency and this bylaw is "another piece of the puzzle" to address climate change.

Bylaw exceptions

Along with the temperature exceptions, there are a number of other exceptions to the bylaw, which include: 

• Emergency vehicles while engaged in operational activities including training and patient transfer.
• Emergency vehicles at the scene of an emergency, including tow trucks while engaged in hooking up to or moving another vehicle.
• A vehicle containing equipment that must be operated in association with the vehicle.
• Mobile workshops while someone is using the equipment that must be operated in association with the vehicle.
• Vehicles where idling is required to repair it or prepare it for service.
• Armoured vehicles where a person remains inside the vehicle while guarding the contents of the vehicle or while the vehicle is being loaded or unloaded.
• Vehicles required to remain motionless due to an emergency, traffic, weather condition or mechanical difficulty over which the person driving the vehicle has no control.
• Vehicles engaged in a parade or race or any other event authorized by council.
• Transit and passenger vehicles, while passengers are embarking or disembarking on route or at terminals.
• Commercial vehicles using heating or refrigeration systems powered by the motor or engine for the preservation of perishable cargo.
• Vehicles engaged in works undertaken for or on behalf of the region, city or public utilities.
• Vehicles being used in normal farm practice.
• Vehicles, including hybrid vehicles, that eliminate the emission of greenhouse gases and criteria air contaminants during the idling phase of operation.