Halifax road safety advocate questions why preventative measures aren't a bigger part of Nova Scotia's new Traffic Safety Act

While the province’s new Traffic Safety Act is set to come into effect on Monday, some of the 26 new regulations have raised questions with Vision Zero Kjipuktuk-Halifax, an advocacy group focused on protecting road users.

Martyn Williams, a Vision Zero member, said that while the group welcomes the act’s intention to improve road safety, there is significant work to be done.

“More enforcement and higher fines won’t necessarily solve root problems,” said Williams.

The changes include a fine of up to $2,000 for drivers who fail to drive in a “careful and prudent manner” and cause injury or death to a vulnerable road user.

An offence was introduced to cover “dooring” incidents, when a vehicle door is opened into the pathway of a cyclist, causing a crash. An incident of this nature was the cause of death of Dalhousie University professor Nouman Ali earlier this year.

Now, a person inside a vehicle who does not take “due precautions” to ensure their door will not interfere with the movement of or endanger any traffic will face a fine up to $600.

The provincial government states that the new act, which was passed in fall 2025, is a flexible and modern response to evolving transportation needs.

It marks Nova Scotia’s largest change to road safety in recent history, replacing the Motor Vehicle Act that has been in place since the early 1900s.

According to Halifax Regional Municipality’s road safety annual report, there were 20 fatal collisions and 182 fatal or serious collisions on city roads last year.

Williams said real infrastructure change is needed to prevent road deaths. That includes better protections for pedestrians while in intersections and traffic lights adjusted to give pedestrians a car-free crossing.

Another change Williams would like to see is photo radar technology, but it does not look like it is coming to Nova Scotia anytime soon.

Williams said it was a surprise to see Nova Scotia will not be getting red-light or speed cameras. The minister of public works told reporters in August that “digital technologies” were years away.

A spokesperson with the Department of Public Works wrote Tuesday that there is still a lot of work to be done before Nova Scotia could see photo radar technology.

“Electronic enforcement is not something that will be coming to Nova Scotia roads soon,” the spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement to The Chronicle Herald.

The province needs to know more about the costs involved with the technology and how it would make roads safer before it could introduce the cameras, the department said.

“The question is not about the technology; it’s about understanding if it can be enforced effectively here,” the statement read. “We know that other jurisdictions have recently decided to remove this technology. We need to understand those decisions before we can move forward.”

Last year, Ontario Premier Doug Ford made the decision to remove all speed cameras in his province.

Williams said cameras are proven to reduce crashes and he hopes that the province will reconsider.

“We’re used to the almost daily drama of crashes that play out on our roads here and I don’t think we understand yet how significantly that could be addressed through different measures like speed and red-light cameras, changes in our traffic lights, changes in road layout,” said Williams.

“There’s a whole plethora of things that can make our roads safer for all users.”

One positive coming to the Halifax Regional Municipality is the power to change speed limits of 80 km/h and under. Previously, the municipality needed to get approval from the province before making a change, but now it will be up to the municipal traffic authority.

Williams said the change is positive, but the decision-making power should not be held by just one person.

“The (municipal traffic authority) now has complete control over those decisions, and we would rather have seen that decision in the hands of elected representatives because they certainly do understand themselves how significant speed is as an issue, and they could also make good decisions potentially on lower speeds in specific areas,” said Williams.

Pedestrians could see fines up to $1,000 for walking in front of a vehicle or up to $600 for failing to use a highway with due care. Williams said those should be reconsidered.

“For example, for a pedestrian walking or running into the path of a vehicle, it’s maximum $1,000, and we’re not sure of the need for that because obviously no one would deliberately walk or run into the path of the vehicle,” said Williams.

“So that would likely be an error, and we don’t think it warrants a high fine.”

Vision Zero also raises concerns around the wording and definitions used in some of the regulations.

This includes the definition of a pedestrian, which eliminates people using mobility scooters or wheelchairs, which Williams said is prudent when considering fines.

One regulation requires cyclists to dismount when crossing a crosswalk but does not include any specifications for disabled cyclists.

Definitions are important, especially when an offence is making its way through the policing and courts system, said Williams.

“It seems clear what intentions are but, certainly with the wording, it would be good to clarify that to the public so that everybody knows where they are, particularly because those fines are now really high.”

Williams stressed the importance of the government being flexible and adjusting as needed. He said he hopes to see developments that will focus on changing the root problem with road infrastructure.

“We hope that the provincial government will see it fit to review how things are going and move forwards with key things like introducing frameworks for governments to resolve safety issues, the preventive things we’re talking about, (adding photo) radar we feel is critical and that should move forwards within a defined timeline given the chaos and state of our roads currently, the very high rates here of serious injury and fatal crashes, in particular.”