A provincial campaign will launch at the end of August to highlight the dangers of speeding, street racing and reckless driving.
The campaign follows the Government of Alberta's decision to ban photo radar sites on provincial highways and connectors, and making intersection safety devices red-light enforcement only as of April 1. As a result of the changes, St. Albert lost 78 photo radar sites and six intersection safety devices (ISDs), the city's policing services manager Aaron Giesbrecht told the Gazette earlier this year.
Now the province is set to launch a campaign to target racing and reckless driving on Aug. 25, Transportation Minister Devin Dreeshen said. There have been a rash of crashes in Edmonton, which had seen 21 fatal vehicle collisions as of July 31, the Edmonton Journal reported.
"Speed racing is illegal, reckless, and endangers everyone on the road. This campaign focuses on racing because enforcement agencies identified it as a threat. We’re acting now to discourage street racing and promote safer driving across Alberta," Dreeshen said in a statement.
In 2024, there were 473 vehicle collisions in St. Albert. Seven resulted in major injuries, and there was one fatal collision, according to the city's collisions statistics database; 2025 traffic collision data will be available in the second quarter of 2026, city spokesperson Nicole Lynch said in an email.
The St. Albert RCMP's quarterly report to city council showed from January to March 2025, the St. Albert RCMP handed out over 2,000 provincial traffic violation tickets, leading interim detachment commander Staff Sgt. Dwayne Moore to add traffic safety as a fourth priority following consultation with the policing committee.
When asked how this campaign could deter speeding in a way that photo radar could not, Dreeshen said many racers cover their licence plates and resort to other methods to make themselves unidentifiable to cameras.
"Speed racers have found ways around photo radar," Dreeshen said.
St. Albert's transportation manager Dean Schick said in an interview with the Gazette in July that work is done with residents on traffic-calming initiatives to deter dangerous driving and keeping pedestrians safe.
"We receive reports of concern from residents of vehicle speeds," Schick said. "We confirm with a network assessment that speeds may be higher operationally than what the posted speed limit is. There's opportunity then through public engagement to redesign the roadway."
Roadway redesigns could include things like curb extensions that help with pedestrian visibility, or speed bumps and raised crosswalks.
The city of St. Albert is currently developing recommendations on what to do with the remaining photo radar sites that are active in school, playground and construction zones, which they said will be presented to council in September.
The province also launched a $13 million traffic safety fund at the end of May. This fund would allow municipalities to apply for items to address road safety, such as digital speed signs, intersection upgrades, and improvements related to pedestrian safety.
Dreeshen said no municipal governments have applied for funding from the program. The city has said it is awaiting additional details, Schick said in an emailed statement.
"The City of St. Albert is looking forward to continuing to work with the Province of Alberta to maintain traffic safety in our community. At this time, the City has not received specific details on how to apply for the Traffic Safety Fund but will explore opportunities for funding once more information is available," Schick said.
Dreeshen said he is not aware of any inquiry from the City of St. Albert on applying for the fund.
