Saying residents are fed up with “scumbag” criminals, Vaughan Mayor Steven Del Duca announced on Tuesday that he’ll seek council’s approval to fund at least 10 additional CCTV cameras that will be equipped with automated licence plate recognition (ALPR) and gunshot detection technology.
Del Duca said the cameras and the associated technology would come at a price tag of around $350,000, and would be managed by York Regional Police (YRP).
“The city would be investing directly, supporting YRP with the purchase and operation of up to 10 new CCTV, or as I like to call them, crime fighting cameras, here in our community,” Del Duca said during a news conference Tuesday.
Del Duca stressed that the 10 new cameras would be “over and above” a recent crime fighting investment of $255,000 from the province.
Del Duca said YRP has already identified several locations where the cameras would be deployed based on crime statistics.
The mayor also revealed that he plans to pen a letter to Premier Doug Ford, asking his government to work with Highway 407 ETR to install the ALRP technology on 407 cameras across the Greater Toronto Area.
“We know that Highway 407 is a major gateway and getaway opportunity for the criminals who are stealing vehicles in our community,” Del Duca stressed.
Deputy chief Paulo Da Silva said the cameras would help police fight the rash of car thefts and related violent crimes.
The ALPR technology would be integrated with the province’s stolen vehicle data base to quickly identify stolen vehicles.
“The moment a stolen vehicle enters one of these monitored areas our CCTV cameras see it, our officers know it, and we can act immediately,” Da Silva said. “We know that stolen vehicles are often linked to other serious crimes; home invasions, car jackings, robberies and shootings.”
Da Silva added that the gunshot detection technology comes with sensors that “pinpoint the actual gunshot within our community, that alerts us and we respond. So instead of waiting for a 911 call … the system allows us to respond that much quicker and we get it immediately versus a third party calling it in.”
Del Duca stressed that so far no residents have expressed privacy concerns related to CCTV cameras, saying they are on the contrary “exasperated and tired” of violent crime and want their representatives to be proactive when it comes to protecting them.
Deputy mayor Linda Jackson said existing CCTV cameras have already proven quite effective.
“Over the past year we have seen measurable reductions in violent crime at key intersections where cameras were installed,” she stressed. “Between May of 2024 and May 2026, data has shown a 6 per cent reduction in violent crime within one kilometre of CCTV cameras.”
Jackson said the most marked improvement has come at the intersection of Jane Street and Highway 7, which saw a 21.9 per cent decrease in violent crime since a camera was deployed there.
