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Advocates say Surrey RCMP’s use of traffic cameras helped in arrest of three accused killers
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Vancouver police should have access to the city’s network of traffic cameras, according to councillors Brian Montague and Peter Meiszner.
On Wednesday, council’s standing committee on policy and strategic priorities will be asked by the two councillors to change the way Vancouver manages its 221 traffic cameras.
“At present, the City of Vancouver’s traffic camera network is not accessible to the Vancouver Police Department. Moreover, the live feed from traffic cameras is not recorded and stored for after-the-fact investigative purposes,” wrote Montague, a former VPD officer, and Meiszner, a former journalist, in their motion.
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According to the pair, police department access to municipal camera systems in Canada varies widely by jurisdiction.
“Generally speaking, municipalities operate traffic cameras for public safety, traffic management, and bylaw enforcement, with access to these camera systems ranging from real-time monitoring of cameras to later retrieval of recorded video footage upon request for investigative purposes,” the motion states.
“Many large urban cities across Canada are already providing varying degrees of access to city cameras to assist police agencies. For example, traffic camera footage from Surrey was instrumental in the arrests of three individuals who are now charged with the first degree murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar at the Guru Nanak Sikh Gurdwara in June 2023.”
The pair say access to the city’s traffic camera network could “significantly enhance the VPD’s operational capabilities by providing real-time visual information that allows for a more effective and efficient deployment of police resources to incidents as they occur, not only for quicker response times but also for more informed and effective decision-making in critical situations.”
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If the motion is approved, city staff will be asked to report on the cost and legal implications of recording video taken by traffic cameras for a period of seven days, during which time police would have access to it.
Staff would also be required to create guidelines to govern VPD use, storage, and dissemination of video footage.
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