Green tyranny: Ottawa passes new law limiting car idling to just 1 minute per hour

01/19/2025 / By Ava Grace

The City of Ottawa has implemented a strict idling bylaw, limiting unoccupied vehicles to one minute of idling per hour.
For occupied vehicles, the limit is three minutes per hour in moderate temperatures and 10 minutes per hour in extreme cold or heat.
Violators face a minimum CA$500 fine, with repeat offenders potentially paying up to CA$100,000.
The city aims to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, estimating that cutting daily idling by two minutes per driver could eliminate 31.2 million kilograms of CO2 annually, equivalent to removing 6,780 cars from the road.

The City of Ottawa has rolled out a new idling bylaw that restricts unoccupied vehicles to just one minute of idling per hour, regardless of the temperature.

For those brave enough to sit in their cars during Ottawa’s infamous winters, the limit is slightly more generous: Three minutes per hour when temperatures are between 0 to 27 degrees Celsius (32 to 81 degrees Fahrenheit) and 10 minutes per hour when the mercury dips below freezing or soars above 27 degrees Celsius.

The fine for breaking these rules is a hefty CA$500 ($350) minimum, with repeat offenders facing penalties of up to CA$100,000 ($69,700). (Related: Emergencies Act invocation ruled unconstitutional: Trudeau’s government under fire.)

The city claims this crackdown on idling is a necessary step to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and improve air quality. But as the snow piles up and the wind chill bites, many residents are left wondering if one minute of idling really makes a difference.

Greenhouse gases, primarily carbon dioxide (CO2), are emitted when fossil fuels like gasoline are burned. These gases trap heat in the atmosphere, contributing to global warming. Idling – running a vehicle’s engine while it’s stationary – burns fuel without moving the car, releasing CO2 into the air for no practical purpose.

Ottawa’s idling bylaw applies only to unoccupied vehicles. Critics of the new bylaw are wondering how many people are idling their cars for hours on end without being in them. They note that the average driver warms up their car for just a few minutes on cold mornings. They similarly idle their cars to cool them down during scorching hot summer days. Whether or not these few minutes of idling will have any measurable impact on air quality or emissions remains up in the air.

The city’s own research suggests that public opinion is divided over the new idling law. A survey conducted in May 2024 found that 164 respondents opposed the new bylaw, while only 86 supported it. The majority of those surveyed called for more education and enforcement rather than stricter rules.

Yet, the city pressed ahead, citing “best practices” from other municipalities and aligning with Natural Resources Canada‘s model idling bylaw.

City claims shaving two minutes of idling for every driver per day can lead to massive reductions in air pollutants

The city claims that if every Ottawa driver reduced daily idling by just two minutes, CO2 emissions would drop by 31.2 million kilograms annually, equivalent to taking 6,780 cars off the road.

The city claims that one minute of idling is the “break-even point” between emissions reductions and the time needed to warm up a vehicle’s engine.

While the city promises a “robust public education campaign,” the reality is that most drivers are unlikely to change their habits unless they face significant fines. And with enforcement historically lax – only seven tickets issued per year on average – it’s unclear whether this bylaw will have any real teeth.

Then there’s the issue of exemptions. Emergency vehicles, public transit and even armored cars are all exempt from the idling restrictions. While these exceptions make sense, they also highlight the bylaw’s limitations. If the goal is truly to reduce emissions, critics question why the city isn’t focusing on larger polluters or investing in public transit infrastructure to reduce car dependency altogether.

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