I'm curious of how many

[Whitewolf1970]

Here in this city, my sgt friend told me there are 6 intersections with cameras. How many "Red Lights" cameras are in your city? I am amazed when I see them start flashing.

[Nuklhed]

Hi there... Our city used to have more than 12 of them. Then the Lawyers got a hold of them and we lost every single one of them. Now after about 2 or 3 years they have started to turn them back on. Of course they had to tweak the settings and what not.

[PerpPredator]

Hi there... Our city used to have more than 12 of them. Then the Lawyers got a hold of them and we lost every single one of them. Now after about 2 or 3 years they have started to turn them back on. Of course they had to tweak the settings and what not.

Why did the lawyers have them turned off?

[Whitewolf1970]

Wow. That's sad. Some lawyers get to be so snobby about it. There is nothing wrong with the "Red Light" camera. <sigh>

[corporal716]

Wow. That's sad. Some lawyers get to be so snobby about it. There is nothing wrong with the "Red Light" camera. <sigh>

Only the fact that you do not sign a promise to appear, and loss the right to be taken before the first available magistrate. And that you can not confront your accuser.

I know those were a few of the arguments, amoung others, about them where I live. I haven't seen the subjet come up around here for a while. I don't know what ever happened with it.

[Norm357]

Only the fact that you do not sign a promise to appear, and loss the right to be taken before the first available magistrate. And that you can not confront your accuser.

I know those were a few of the arguments, amoung others, about them where I live. I haven't seen the subjet come up around here for a while. I don't know what ever happened with it.

On top of all that, a company contracted by a couple towns here, that got into trouble for changing the timing of the traffic lights, shortening the time that the yellow is lit so they could issue more tickets. They got into a boatload of trouble for that and the red light camers went bye bye.

[Drew27k9]

We don't have any traffic lights in our county with the camera, but Philadelphia is going to be putting them up soon.

[Drew27k9]

We don't have any traffic lights in our county with the camera, but Philadelphia is going to be putting them up soon.

As a matter of fact, here is an article that appeared in the Philadelphia papers the other day regarding the lights causing accident..

Link: http://www.philly.com/mld/inquirer/n...9759710.htm?1c

Side effect of red-light cameras: AccidentsStudies of the traffic-control system show that, though right-angle crashes may drop, rear-end collisions increase.

As Philadelphia prepares to become Pennsylvania's first city to install red-light cameras at traffic intersections, there is one ugly side effect of the systems that officials are not promoting.

In city after city, studies show that, while right-angle accidents drop, rear-end collisions increase after cameras are installed.

Drivers, afraid of getting caught on a camera running a red light, hit the brakes and get rear-ended by the car behind them, studies show.

The problem is compounded by a brief strobe light that flashes when the photo is taken.

"People see these strobes go off and realize they have just run a light, and they slam on the brakes," said Lon Anderson of AAA Mid-Atlantic, who supports the use of the cameras as long as they are used for safety and not to raise revenue.

In Charlotte, N.C., for instance, rear-end crashes went up by 16 percent over a three-year period after cameras were installed in 1998, according to a 2001 study commissioned by that city.

In San Diego, the rate of rear-end collisions increased by 37 percent, according to a 2002 study commissioned by that city.

"What the cameras do is, they change reasonable behavior into unreasonable behavior," said Greg Mauz, a member of the National Motorists Association, a group funded by membership dues that is seeking to have red-light cameras banned nationwide.

City officials and officials at the Philadelphia Parking Authority, which, under state and local laws, will oversee Philadelphia's red-light-camera traffic-enforcement program, acknowledge that rear-end collisions may go up, but say that will be far outweighed by the decrease in right-angle collisions, which usually result in more serious injuries than rear-end crashes.

"In the majority of the cases, the reduction of the angle accidents and their severity is greater than the increase in rear-ends," said Charles Trainor, the city's chief traffic engineer.

The Parking Authority board is expected to hire a company tomorrow to install cameras in Philadelphia. Nine intersections are being considered for cameras. Violators will receive a citation in the mail and a $100 fine.

The Parking Authority decided to rebid the camera contract last month after only one company, Affiliated Computer Services, of Dallas, expressed interest, and potential bidders complained that the agency's request for proposals favored ACS.

Parking Authority officials have refused to say which companies have bid this time around. "We have received more than one" bid, said Linda Miller, a Parking Authority spokeswoman.

Officials from the companies that provide red-light-camera systems and experts such as Richard Retting of the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a nonprofit group funded by insurance companies that studies traffic-safety issues, say the benefits of cameras outweigh the negatives.

Maury Hannigan, an ACS vice president in charge of the company's photo enforcement division, acknowledged that rear-end collisions often go up, but said that is overshadowed by the reduction in right-angle crashes.

"Would you rather somebody bump you in the rear, or would you rather somebody enter your driver's compartment at 40 miles per hour?" Hannigan said. "That's a no-brainer."

Retting, who has extensively studied camera systems and is a recognized expert, said studies done around the world show that intersection crashes that cause injuries go down by about 25 percent to 30 percent after cameras are installed, far outweighing the "regrettable" side effect of an increase in rear-end collisions.

John Petrozza, president of Mulvihill Intelligent Control Systems Inc., which is interested in the Philadelphia camera contract and which installed a red-light-camera system in New York City as early as 1993, said the rear-end collisions "normalize" after motorists get used to the intersections' having cameras.

Authority officials say they hope to reduce the rear-end collisions by working with the city to ensure that yellow lights give drivers enough time to decide whether to stop or proceed without running the light.

Yellow signals in Pennsylvania are set in accordance with a federal standard that recommends the light be between three and six seconds long.

Camera critics contend that setting the yellow lights closer to six seconds and reengineering some intersections would eliminate the need for cameras.

Some critics have gone as far as to file lawsuits against cities and camera-system companies, contending that yellow signals set below the three-second minimum allowed municipalities and camera-system installers to reap a financial benefit from fines as more drivers were caught running red lights.

Two Baltimore residents, for example, filed suit in July seeking $10 million in damages on behalf of anyone who received a citation since June 2001 at a red-light-camera intersection there. They contend that the city and ACS, which runs the city's camera system, have neglected to correct yellow lights that are shorter than three seconds.

They also allege that neglect has profited both ACS and the city. Baltimore fines violators $75.

Hannigan, of ACS, said the company does not control the timing of Baltimore's yellow lights. Baltimore's city solicitor told a local television news station last month that "we do not believe there is merit to the case and we will aggressively defend against any lawsuit."

The winning bidder for Philadelphia's red-light-camera program will be paid a fixed fee per installed system. The state and local laws authorizing the city to use the cameras also require that the yellow signals be set in accordance with state and local standards, which emulate the national recommended standard.

The laws also require that signs be placed in "conspicuous" places before the intersection to alert drivers to the cameras.

Anderson, of AAA Mid-Atlantic, said signs are critical if the cameras are to be used for safety as opposed to generating revenue. "It would definitely cut down on rear-end collisions," Anderson said.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[codered]

But then , if you 'loan' your car ..........you deserve a ticket (kinda of an 'education' to those that loan cars dont'cha think? .......lesson , DON'T LOAN YOUR CAR YOU IDIOT!)
If you exchange your 'sled' for crack, you will be held accountable.(i'm not 'slammin' here........its just my opinion on why some people 'loan cars' ........why they are stupid enough to do so ...is 'there' opinion.)

[scott715us]

I think intersection cameras are a good thing for many uses. I don't believe there are any towns that use them for traffic enforcement, so I couldn't chime in on that particular issue.

We have many cities coming up with intersection cameras to try and resolve mass traffic issues. Also where there are many accidents at one intersection.

I saw a good show on Discovery about towns in England using cameras to fight crime. They put them up all over the city, particularly in high crime areas, and it was amazing of how much they caught on tape that ended in an arrest and conviction.

I used them so much when I worked retail security before I became an LEO. We have over 150 cameras in our airport that do us a lot of good when it comes to having to arrest someone. Not too long ago, we caught a perp molesting his niece standing in line at an airline ticket counter!! In my opinion, you can't go wrong with cameras. Stay safe ;)

[Whitewolf1970]

Thanks for the information. Now I understand there is advantage and disadvantage of "Red Light" camera system. Thanks, guys.


Now I'm able to reply.

[Whitewolf1970]

Another failing of those cameras is that the owner of the car is penalized, not whoever was actually driving it. Loan your car to a friend or relative and when they run a red light, YOU get the ticket in the mail a few weeks afterwards.

And drivers using fake temp tags or improper hard tags get a pass every time.

Aw, jeez, so no wonder a neighbor next door was bickering with his so-called buddy over the $341 ticket that he loaned his car to him and his so-called buddy refused to foot the ticket in his mouth. So no wonder we kept saying "no" when someone asked if he/she can borrow my car. Not sure if he/she wanted to borrow it to run through the red light OR he/she might steal our car. Am I right for refusing to loan our cars to them?