Red Light Cameras Work To Good

[Maidpool w/ Cleaning Action]

Apparently, those cameras ment to catch people running red lights are working to good in many places. They've caught so many people that people have started to be more cautious and haven't ran as many red lights or been in as many accidents in those cities/areas.

Here's the sad thing, because of that, they are thinking of taking them down as the place makes less money from fines.

Yeah, that's real nice that they are more concerned with making a buck then the actual safety of citizens.

www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23710970

I know some people will be happy though, so they can cut them reds again.

[Cranjis McBasketball]

Yeah, no shit they're only for money. I know that, I wish they'd just say it instead of trying to convince us it's for safety. A picture of a guy running down someone in the crosswalk doesn't save the person in the crosswalk, in other words, they are not really for "safety" as such.

They are about making cash. That is all.

[Maidpool w/ Cleaning Action]

cdr said:

Yeah, no crap they're only for money. I know that, I wish they'd just say it instead of trying to convince us it's for safety. A picture of a guy running down someone in the crosswalk doesn't save the person in the crosswalk, in other words, they are not really for "safety" as such.

They are about making cash. That is all.

No, but at least it could get some justice for the victims family. As opposed to no one knowing who did it.

[CJ Denton is Egon]

if they did care, they would have built an overwalkway in every major intersection.

[Ace Diamond]

dentonjc said:

if they did care, they would have built an overwalkway in every major intersection.

This

[Maidpool w/ Cleaning Action]

Well, these cameras are mainly to get people to stop running reds and help prevent wrecks, and according to this article they are doing their job.

The walk way thing is true though.

[The Booty Disciple]

There's plenty of conflicting reports on their effectiveness, though. For instance...

Red-light Cameras Increase Crashes, Florida Researchers Find

Rather than improving motorist safety, red-light cameras significantly increase crashes researchers at the University of South Florida College of Public Health conclude. (Credit: iStockphoto/Sue Smith)

ScienceDaily (Mar. 12, 2008) — Rather than improving motorist safety, red-light cameras significantly increase crashes and are a ticket to higher auto insurance premiums, researchers at the University of South Florida College of Public Health conclude. The effective remedy to red-light running uses engineering solutions to improve intersection safety, which is particularly important to Florida’s elderly drivers, the researchers recommend.

“The rigorous studies clearly show red-light cameras don’t work,” said lead author Barbara Langland-Orban, professor and chair of health policy and management at the USF College of Public Health.

“Instead, they increase crashes and injuries as drivers attempt to abruptly stop at camera intersections. If used in Florida, cameras could potentially create even worse outcomes due to the state’s high percent of elderly who are more likely to be injured or killed when a crash occurs.”

Red-light cameras photograph violators who are then sent tickets in the mail. Hillsborough County Commissioners unanimously agreed earlier this month to install the cameras at several major intersections in the county. The devices could be adopted by more cities and counties if Florida legislators pave the way by changing a state law this spring.

The USF report highlights trends in red-light running in Florida, summarizes major studies, and analyzes the automobile insurance industry’s financial interest in cameras. Among the findings:

* Traffic fatalities caused by red-light running are not increasing in Florida and account for less than 4 percent of the state’s yearly traffic deaths. In contrast, more than 22 percent of the state’s traffic fatalities occur at intersections for reasons other than red-light running.
* The injury rate from red-light running crashes has dropped by a third in less than a decade, indicating red-light running crashes have been continually declining in Florida without the use of cameras.
* Comprehensive studies from North Carolina, Virginia, and Ontario have all reported cameras are significantly associated with increases in crashes, as well as crashes involving injuries. The study by the Virginia Transportation Research Council also found that cameras were linked to increased crash costs.
* Some studies that conclude cameras reduced crashes or injuries contained major “research design flaws,” such as incomplete data or inadequate analyses, and were conducted by researchers with links to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. The IIHS, funded by automobile insurance companies, is the leading advocate for red-light cameras. Insurers can profit from red-light cameras, since their revenues will increase when higher premiums are charged due to the crash and citation increase, the researchers say.

Langland-Orban said the findings have been known for some time. She cites a 2001 paper by the Office of the Majority Leader, U.S. House of Representatives, reporting that red-light cameras are “a hidden tax levied on motorists.” The report concluded cameras are associated with increased crashes, the timings at yellow lights are often set too short to increase tickets for red-light running, and most research concluding cameras are effective was conducted by one researcher from the IIHS. Since then, studies independent of the automobile insurance industry continue to find cameras are associated with large increases in crashes.

Red-light running can be reduced by engineering improvements that address factors such as signal visibility and timings, wet roads and traffic flow, the USF researchers say.

The researchers suggest local governments follow the state’s lead in designing roads and improving intersections to accommodate elderly drivers, which would ultimately benefit all drivers.

The report " Red-Light Running Cameras: Would Crashes, Injuries and Automobile Insurance Rates Increase If They Are Used in Florida?" was published in March 2008 in the Florida Public Health Review, the online journal of the college and the Florida Public Health Association. Etienne Pracht, PhD, and John Large, PhD, were the other authors of the USF public policy report.

Adapted from materials provided by University of South Florida Health.

www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311151159.htm