At least $141,000 in fines still owed one year later

One year after the “Freedom Convoy” arrived in Ottawa, the city says a about half the value of the tickets handed out during the protests has been collected.

Between Jan. 28 and Feb.18, 2022, officials handed out 3,812 parking tickets and 318 provincial offence notices for illegal parking, including on private property and in noparking zones. Those fines totalled $320,545 — but just over $141,000 of that is still outstanding.

Unpaid fines can lead to license plate denial or the fines can be transferred to property taxes, garnished from wages or referred to a collection agency — though it is not clear whether Ottawa has taken any of these steps.

The weeks-long protests cost the city about $7 million and cost Ottawa police $55 million, as demonstrators opposed to COVID-19 mandates and the federal government blockaded downtown streets.

The city has asked the federal government to pick up the tab for those costs, but no funding announcement has been made.