Two-thirds of Canadians favour speeding fines tied to driver’s income: poll

Two-thirds of Canadians asked say they would be in favour of a system which ties fines for speeding to the individual income of the offender.

A poll conducted by Research Co. finds 65 per cent of Canadians support what’s known as “progressive punishment” for speeding tickets, a system that is already in place in Finland and Switzerland.

Under the Finnish model, fines are based on the disposable income of the driver and how much the driver is over the speed limit.

Support for such a system is highest in British Columbia and Quebec, with seven-in-10 in favour of it, while 63 per cent of Ontarians support “progressive punishment.”

Not surprising, the poll found that those in the highest income bracket were against the measure.

“Opposition to this course of action among Canadians who live in households earning more than $100,000 a year reaches 34 per cent, 10 points higher than the national average,” says Mario Canseco, President of Research Co.

Along the same lines, more than half of Canadians would support a “progressive punishment” system when it comes to unpaid parking tickets. Under this model, fines would be set on the basis of the disposable income of the offender and how many days the fine has gone unpaid.

The online poll was conducted from March 18 to March 20, 2023, using 1,000 Canadian adults and has a margin of error of +/- 3.1 percentage points, 19 times out of 20.