Provincial Offences

How are speeding fines set in Ontario, and why do they double in safety and construction zones?

Last updated October 7, 2026.

An Ontario speeding ticket is priced per kilometre over the limit. The set fine on the ticket is $2.50 a kilometre for 1 to 19 km/h over, $3.75 for 20 to 29, and $6.00 for 30 to 49, plus a victim fine surcharge and court costs. At 50 km/h or more over, there is no out-of-court payment. Fines double in a posted community safety zone, and in a construction zone when a worker is present.

Speeding is charged under section 128 of the Highway Traffic Act and handled in the Ontario Court of Justice under the Provincial Offences Act. Carson Frankum is a licensed paralegal in Hamilton who represents drivers on these tickets; our page on provincial offences and traffic ticket help explains how that works. This guide shows how the number on your ticket is reached, what changes it, and what the demerit points will be.

How is a speeding fine worked out, step by step?

Three sets of rules combine to produce the amount you see on a speeding ticket: the speed limit that applied, the per-kilometre rate for your speed band, and any zone that doubles the rate. Here is the order a ticket follows.

The limit is fixed by law or by sign. Under section 128(1) of the Highway Traffic Act, the default is 50 km/h in a local municipality or built-up area and 80 km/h elsewhere, unless a by-law or regulation sets a different limit. A municipal by-law can set any limit up to 100 km/h (s. 128(2)), and lower limits in designated areas and school zones (s. 128(2.1) and (5)). A by-law limit does not take effect until the road is signed (s. 128(11)).
The officer records your speed and the zone. The ticket names the limit, the speed and, if it applies, the community safety zone or construction zone. Speeding is an absolute liability offence, so the Ontario Court of Justice's guide for defendants says the prosecutor only has to prove you drove over the limit, not that you meant to.
The set fine comes from the Chief Justice's schedule. The Ontario Court of Justice publishes the set fines for provincial offences. For speeding, Schedule 43 points to a per-kilometre table, which is reproduced in the table below.
The surcharge and costs are added. Section 60.1 of the Provincial Offences Act adds a victim fine surcharge to any fine, and section 60 adds court costs. The total payable printed on the ticket includes both. A justice of the peace has no power to waive them, according to the court's guide.
You choose what to do within 15 days. You can pay, ask for a meeting with the prosecutor, or ask for a trial. Doing nothing for 15 days means you are deemed not to dispute the charge (POA s. 9(1)), and the clerk can enter a conviction for the set fine without a hearing.
A conviction brings demerit points. Points are recorded under O. Reg. 339/94 by speed band, as of the date of the offence, and they count for two years.

Speeding set fines and demerit points in Ontario (OCJ Schedule 43, Schedules B, D, E and F; O. Reg. 339/94)
Km/h over the limit	Set fine, ordinary road	Set fine, community safety zone or construction zone with worker present	Demerit points
1 to 15	$2.50 per km	$5.00 per km	0
16 to 19	$2.50 per km	$5.00 per km	3
20 to 29	$3.75 per km	$7.50 per km	3
30 to 49	$6.00 per km	$12.00 per km	4
50 or more	No out-of-court payment; you go to court	No out-of-court payment; you go to court	6

A construction zone with no worker present uses the ordinary rates (Schedule E). Only Schedule F, "worker present", doubles them. The demerit points do not change with the zone. Not every ticket is priced by speed: a phone ticket depends on how many convictions you have, as our guide to distracted driving penalties explains.

Why do fines double in community safety and construction zones?

The doubling comes from the Highway Traffic Act itself, not from the officer's choice. Section 214.1(1) lets a municipal council designate part of a road as a community safety zone where, in council's opinion, public safety is of special concern. The by-law must say the hours, days and months the zone is in effect (s. 214.1(3)), and it has no effect until signs are up (s. 214.1(5)). When you speed in a zone that is in effect, section 214.1(6) replaces the ordinary fines with double the amount in each band.

Construction zones work the same way, with one more condition. A Ministry official or a person appointed by the municipality designates the zone and marks it with signs (s. 128(8) and (8.1)), and the signs themselves are proof of the designation unless there is evidence to the contrary (s. 128(8.2)). The doubled fines in section 128(14.1) apply only "when there is a worker in the construction zone." If a zone is both a community safety zone and a construction zone with a worker present, the fine doubles once, not twice (s. 214.1(6.1)).

School zones are different. Section 128(5) lets a municipality set a lower limit near a school on school days, but the fine only doubles if that stretch is also designated a community safety zone. Read the signs, and if you are charged, check the disclosure for proof of the designation and its hours.

What changes the answer?

Going to court instead of paying. The set fines are the out-of-court amounts. The Act itself sets higher rates for a conviction: $3, $4.50, $7 and $9.75 per kilometre for the four bands (s. 128(14)). So fighting and losing can cost more than the ticket. When the charge started as a ticket under Part I, section 12(1) of the Provincial Offences Act caps the fine at $1,000.
50 km/h or more over. There is no set fine at this speed, so you must attend court. On conviction, the court may also suspend the licence for up to 30 days, with longer maximums for repeat convictions within five years (s. 128(15) to (15.2)).
Speeds that count as stunt driving. Under O. Reg. 455/07, driving 40 km/h or more over a limit under 80, 50 km/h or more over a limit of 80 or more, or 150 km/h or more, is a "stunt." Police then take your licence for 30 days and impound the vehicle for 14 days at the roadside (HTA s. 172(8) to (10)), and a conviction carries a fine of $2,000 to $10,000 and a suspension of at least one year (s. 172(2) and (3)). Our page on stunt driving penalties covers those charges.
Points by band, not by fine. Under the regulation's table, 1 to 15 km/h over carries no points, 16 to 29 carries three, 30 to 49 carries four, and 50 or more carries six. The Ministry's summary also lists six points for 40 km/h or more over where the limit is under 80, which matches a stunt conviction (six points for racing under item 3). See how demerit points add up for the warning and suspension thresholds.
Novice drivers. A G1 or G2 driver convicted of an offence carrying four or more points faces an escalating licence suspension on top of the fine, according to the Ministry. Our page on tickets for G1 and G2 drivers explains the steps.
Camera tickets. The part of the Act that allowed automated speed enforcement cameras (Part XIV.1) has been repealed (S.O. 2025, c. 11, Sched. 5), as the current consolidation shows. Red light camera systems are still provided for in Part XIV.2 of the Act; our page on red light camera and parking tickets in Hamilton covers them.
Emergency vehicles. Speed limits do not apply to police, fire and ambulance vehicles in the circumstances set out in section 128(13).

A worked example

For example, imagine a Hamilton driver named Marco who is clocked at 72 km/h in a posted 50 km/h zone on a residential street that the City has signed as a community safety zone. He is 22 km/h over.

On an ordinary road, his set fine would be 22 times $3.75, or $82.50, before the surcharge and costs. Because the zone was in effect, the set fine is 22 times $7.50, or $165.00, plus the surcharge and costs shown as the total payable. Either way, a conviction at 22 over records three demerit points.

If Marco asks for a trial and is convicted, the Act's rate for 20 to 29 km/h over is $4.50 a kilometre, doubled in the zone to $9 a kilometre, which works out to $198 before the surcharge and costs. That is the trade-off he weighs, and our article on when to pay a traffic ticket and when to fight it covers the wider decision. He might first ask for an early resolution meeting, request disclosure to check the zone's signs and hours, and look at whether the designation was in effect at the time of day he was stopped. That does not decide the result; it tells him what he is deciding. Marco is a made-up example, not a real client or outcome.

Common mistakes people make with speeding tickets

Doing the maths with the wrong band. At 19 km/h over the rate is $2.50 a kilometre, but at 20 it jumps to $3.75 for every kilometre, not just the extra one. The points jump at 16, 30 and 50.
Assuming a school zone always doubles the fine. Only a designated community safety zone, in effect at that time, doubles it.
Assuming any orange sign doubles the fine. In a construction zone, the doubled rate needs a worker present (s. 128(14.1)).
Not asking about the device. Hamilton's Provincial Offences page publishes the operating manuals for the radar and laser devices that Hamilton Police and the OPP use, and the officer's notes name the device. Disclosure is free, but you must ask for it.
Letting the 15 days run out. A conviction can be entered without you, and points follow. If that has already happened, see how to reopen a conviction entered without you.
Ignoring the fine after conviction. Unpaid fines go into default after 15 days and can lead to a licence suspension; read what happens when a traffic fine goes unpaid.

What to do this week

Find the limit, your recorded speed and any zone named on the ticket. Work out the kilometres over and the band.
Check your points: add the points for this band to anything you received for offences in the last two years.
Mark the 15-day deadline from the date the ticket was served.
If you were in a safety or construction zone, take dated photos of the signs, or note where they were, as soon as you can.
Decide between paying, an early resolution meeting and a trial. In Hamilton, the City's Provincial Offences Administration office takes requests online, by email, by mail or in person.
If you ask for a meeting or trial, send a written disclosure request to the prosecutor's office once you have a date.
If you were 50 km/h or more over, or charged with stunt driving, get advice before your first court date.

Frequently asked questions

Does the victim fine surcharge apply to speeding tickets?

Yes. Section 60.1 of the Provincial Offences Act adds a surcharge to any fine imposed in a proceeding started under Part I or Part III, which includes speeding tickets. It is included in the total payable printed on the ticket, along with court costs.

Can a prosecutor lower the speed on my ticket?

At an early resolution meeting, the defendant and the prosecutor may agree to a guilty plea to the offence charged or a substituted offence (POA s. 5.1(7)). Whether a prosecutor agrees to anything depends on the case, and a justice must accept the plea. Our page on early resolution meetings with the prosecutor explains the process.

How long do speeding points stay on my record?

Demerit points count for two years from the date of the offence, according to the Ministry of Transportation and O. Reg. 339/94. Older points drop out of the total that triggers warning letters, interviews and suspensions.

Is going 1 to 15 km/h over really zero points?

Yes. The regulation's table starts speeding points at "more than 15 km/h" over the limit. You still pay the fine and still have a conviction for speeding.

Where do Hamilton speeding tickets go?

Most Hamilton tickets name the City's Provincial Offences Administration office at 50 Main Street East as the court office. Our page on Hamilton's Provincial Offences Court lists the request options and how virtual appearances work.

Can I be charged with speeding and careless driving for the same incident?

Yes, police can lay more than one charge. If you are convicted of two or more offences from the same circumstances and no suspension is imposed, points are recorded only for the conviction with the most points (O. Reg. 339/94, s. 3(2)).

Sources

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This page gives general information about Ontario law, not legal advice for your situation. Cheddar Paralegal PC is a paralegal firm licensed by the Law Society of Ontario; licensed paralegals can help only with matters the Law Society allows paralegals to handle.