Disobey Turn Sign - Does It Need To Be Bilingual

Original post copied to proper area for "disobey signs"

HB

HTA Moderator

Neely2005 wrote:

Radar Identified wrote:One of the most frequent tickets we get asked about on this forum is "Disobey Sign" of some sort. In many parts of Ontario, if the sign is not bilingual, there is a possibility that it may be challenged as invalid. This is because of O.Reg 615 (which sets the standard for road signs) requiring bilingual signs in a designated bilingual area, which was initially backed up by the R. v Myers case. A bilingual sign is either pictogram-only, or if it lists specific times when the sign is in effect, it says, for example "MON - FRI" and also "LUN - VEN." While it may seem rather strange that Toronto (which has 1.4% of the population as French-speaking but substantially larger populations that speak Mandarin, Cantonese, Hindi, Urdu, Vietnamese, Arabic, Tagalog, Italian, Greek, Portuguese, Spanish, etc) requires French signs, it is an option. It is not, however, bulletproof. Myers was appealed and the defendant pled guilty, so no precedent was set. If you wish to use this defence, you must state that O.Reg 615 requires bilingual road signs, and even though the municipality itself may not have committed to providing French services, the province of Ontario clearly has. As such, the ticket affects your provincial driving record and demerit points, so it is logical that the sign should be bilingual. Will they accept it? Maybe, maybe not. If, however, the sign is on a PROVINCIAL highway (e.g. 401, hwy 3, etc), then the sign must be bilingual.

If you're wondering whether your city is a designated bilingual area, here is a list of the current designated bilingual areas, as of May 20, 2009:

City of Toronto

City of Mississauga

City of Brampton

City of Ottawa

City of Hamiton (does NOT include the areas of Waterdown, Ancaster, Flamborough or Dundas)

City of London

City of Windsor

City of Kingston

City of Greater Sudbury and the District of Sudbury

Regional Municipality of Niagara

District of Algoma

District of Cochrane

District of Nipissing

District of Timiskaming

Township of Ignace

Municipality of Callander

County of Stormont

County of Glengarry

County of Russell

County of Prescott

County of Simcoe (Town of Penetanguishene, and the townships of Tiny and Essa only)

County of Renfrew (Town of Pembroke, townships of Stafford and Westmeath only)

District of Thunder Bay (Geraldton, Beardmore, Longlac, Marathon, Manitouwadge, Nakina and Terrace Bay)

Essex County (Belle River, Tecumseh, Tilbury, Colchester North, Maidstone South, Sandwich West, Sandwich South, and Rochester only - but not Leamington, Amherstburg or Kingsville)

If your ticket for disobey sign was in one of those regions, bilingual defence could be applied if the sign was not bilingual. However, the following are some examples of places that are NOT designated bilingual areas:

Regional Municipality of York (Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Stouffville, Newmarket, Aurora, etc)

Regional Municipality of Durham (Oshawa, Whitby, Ajax, Pickering)

Regional Municipality of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, Milton)

Regional Municipality of Kitchener-Waterloo

Oxford County

Dufferin County

City of Peterborough

City of Trenton

And so on.

Also, "STOP" signs are designated by Ontario Regulation 615, which outlines acceptable signage, as acceptable, even though they are in only one language. "STOP" signs cannot be challenged on the basis of not having "ARRET" also written on them, even in a designated bilingual area.

I received a Ticket this morning in Richmond Hill, Ontario for "Disobey Sign" contrary to HTA 182 (2) (I think that's what it says) for making a Right Turn at a Prohibited Time.

Also the officer didn't put my Unit # on the Ticket for my home address.

What are my chances of fighting this under this Bilingual Defence and/or the missing Unit #?

Thanks

RadarIdentified wrote:However, the following are some examples of places that are NOT designated bilingual areas:

Regional Municipality of York (Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Stouffville, Newmarket, Aurora, etc)

Neely2005 wrote:

What are my chances of fighting this under this Bilingual Defence

Richmond Hill is not designated a bilingual area

hwybear wrote:

RadarIdentified wrote:However, the following are some examples of places that are NOT designated bilingual areas:

Regional Municipality of York (Markham, Richmond Hill, Vaughan, Stouffville, Newmarket, Aurora, etc)

Neely2005 wrote:

What are my chances of fighting this under this Bilingual Defence

Richmond Hill is not designated a bilingual area

Thanks. What about the Missing Unit # on the Ticket for my address?

KEEP ON SAME THREAD - post moved from another topic

HB

HTA Moderator

Neely2005 wrote:

Traffic Law wrote:You can request disclosure after you have filed your notice of intention to appear. As part of your disclosure request you should indicate next date for your court appearance (you may also wait until you receive a notice of trial and request it then).

How do you request disclosure? Do you just ask when you go to request a trial date? Or do you have to fill out some forms?