OTTAWA - A settlement between the Ottawa Police Services Board and the Ontario Human Rights Commission (OHRC) means Ottawa police can collect race-based data on traffic stops.

This follows a human rights complaint by Ottawa resident Chad Aiken, who was pulled over in his mother's Mercedes-Benz in 2005. Aiken was 18 at the time, and alleged he was stopped because he was African-Canadian.

The settlement allows the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) to collect race-based data for two years.

According to a release from the OHRC, data collection will help provide bias-free policing, and the data will be used in a way that respects the Ontario Human Rights Code.

"Data collection allows organizations to measure what they do and then manage appropriately," said Barbara Hall, chief commissioner of the OHRC in a release.

"People in every community need to feel confident in their police services. And collection data can help police operate with transparency so that they can maintain trust in the communities they serve."

After two years, the OHRC will analyze the data and give recommendations based on the findings.