Scanned, recopied or Internet copy, if there are errors, please e-mail me with corrections:
Opening comments: More at the end.
Toronto Sun - Oct. 21, 2007 - By Tom Godfrey, Sun Media
Every rider on TTC will be on camera
Security system set for June
TTC chairman Adam Giambrone shows off a newly installed security camera
at Ossington subway station yesterday. (Alex Urosevic, Sun Media)
Every rider using the TTC will be photographed by up to 12,000 tiny cameras come June under the transit system's new security plan, the Sunday Sun has learned.
The cameras, currently being installed on every bus, streetcar, subway car and at each station, will snap photos of each of the 1.5 million people who ride the TTC daily and the pictures made available to police if requested, Councillor Adam Giambrone said yesterday.
"There will be cameras everywhere," the TTC chair told the Sun. "Everyone who enters the TTC legally or illegally will be photographed."
He said the photographs will be accessible only to police to help solve crimes.
ONLY POLICE
Giambrone said the remote-controlled cameras, which cost $18 million, of which Ottawa kicked in $6.5 million, will be operational by June. The plan was approved by the TTC last April and did not require a vote by city council, Giambrone said.
"We don't believe this is an invasion of privacy since police will be the only ones with access to the information," Giambrone said.
Workers or police at the TTC's command centre will be able to instantly view live video or hear audio from any of the security cameras installed on subway cars, Giambrone said.
Controllers will also be able to obtain a live audio feed for incidents on other TTC vehicles for emergency issues, he said.
"We believe the cameras will help solve crimes and act as a deterrent," Giambrone said. "We want to ensure the safety of the public travelling on the TTC."
Giambrone said the tiny cams are one of many features of an overall TTC security plan that includes increasing the amount of TTC constables and adding motion detectors on its property.
TTC spokesman Marilyn Bolton said transit officials worked with police to obtain good-quality cameras that can capture images that will stand up in court.
"Our employees have no access to the images," Bolton said. "The information is not available to everybody."
Councillor Peter Milczyn said there was a need for the cameras to protect the travelling public.
"This is something that we need in our society today," Milczyn said yesterday. "They can help with terrorism and day-to-day cases."
He said many of the TTC's cameras on buses and streetcars are passive in that they continuously operate but their images are only reviewed if police are searching for a suspect.
Alice Barton, of Toronto Public Space Committee, said her group disagrees with the use of the TTC cameras, which she feels violate the privacy of riders.
"We are very opposed to the use of cameras in public spaces," Barton said yesterday. "It is very intrusive when police can keep track on the movements of people."
She said her group is concerned that police will have full access of the images without oversight of their use.
Calls for cameras on the TTC escalated following a number of robberies and shootings at subway stations and buses, including one stabbing last April of a man at Kennedy Station. Police regularly issue TTC photos of criminals they're seeking.
Proponents also maintain the cams can be used -- as was done by police in London, England -- to nab terrorists or break up their cells.
Home Page - Main Table of Contents - Back up a page - Back to Top
[COMMENTS BY DON B. - ]