Red Light Camera News Americans Like Surveillance Cameras Except at Red Lights
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Americans Like Surveillance Cameras Except at Red Lights
in Lifestyle
Sunday, October 16, 2011
Most adults nationwide support the use of surveillance cameras on police cars and in public spaces like train stations and parks, but they aren’t quite as sold on the idea of installing them at traffic intersections.
Most adults nationwide support the use of surveillance cameras on police cars and in public spaces like train stations and parks, but they aren’t quite as sold on the idea of installing them at traffic intersections.
The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 86% of American Adults believe it’s a good idea for police cars to use surveillance cameras to monitor what happens when officers approach and apprehend suspects. Only 10% don’t like the idea. (To see survey question wording, click here.) LINK
A majority (66%) also thinks there should be surveillance cameras in all major public spaces such as train stations, parks and sports stadiums. This idea draws opposition from 23% of adults, while 11% are undecided.
The Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) is planning on installing cameras on all buses, subways and trolleys by 2013 in part to foil false injury claims. LINK to http://articles.philly.com/2011-10-13/news/30275560_1_septa-plans-septa-bus-septa-general-manager Other big cities such as New York, Washington, DC and Atlanta have heavily increased use of surveillance cameras in recent years as an anti-crime measure.
But less than half of adults (44%) think it’s a good idea to use cameras at traffic intersections to catch speeders and those who run red lights. The same number (44%) does not see cameras at intersections as a good thing. Twelve percent (12%) are not sure.
The national survey of 1,000 Adults was conducted on October 11-12, 2011 by Rasmussen Reports. The margin of sampling error is +/- 3 percentage points with a 95% level of confidence. Field work for all Rasmussen Reports surveys is conducted by Pulse Opinion Research, LLC . See methodology.
Women show more support than men do for surveillance cameras in all areas. Most men (51%), for example, oppose red-light cameras, while a plurality (48%) of women supports them.
Adults under 30 are much less supportive than their elders of the use of the cameras.
Government employees favor the use of surveillance cameras in every situation more than those who work for private companies do.
Fifty-five percent (55%) of Democrats support surveillance at traffic intersections, but just 38% of Republicans and 39% of those not affiliated with either major political party agree.
Fifty-four percent (54%) of adults nationwide say they’ve been following recent news reports about increased use of surveillance cameras around the country, including 23% who are following Very Closely.
More than a third of voters believe the U.S. legal system worries too much about individual rights when it comes to public safety, but fewer believe it puts those rights over protecting national security. LINK to 35% Say Legal System Places Individual Rights Over Public Safety
Additional information from this survey and a full demographic breakdown are available to Platinum Members only.
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Rasmussen Reports is a media company specializing in the collection, publication and distribution of public opinion information.
We conduct public opinion polls on a variety of topics to inform our audience on events in the news and other topics of interest. To ensure editorial control and independence, we pay for the polls ourselves and generate revenue through the sale of subscriptions, sponsorships, and advertising. Nightly polling on politics, business and lifestyle topics provides the content to update the Rasmussen Reports web site many times each day. If it's in the news, it's in our polls. Additionally, the data drives a daily update newsletter, the Rasmussen Report on radio and other media outlets.
Some information, including the Rasmussen Reports daily Presidential Tracking Poll and commentaries are available for free to the general public. Subscriptions are available for $3.95 a month or 34.95 a year that provide subscribers with exclusive access to more than 20 stories per week on Election 2012, consumer confidence, and issues that affect us all. For those who are really into the numbers, Platinum Members can review demographic crosstabs and a full history of our data.
Scott Rasmussen, president of Rasmussen Reports, has been an independent pollster for more than a decade. To learn more about our methodology, click here. http://www.rasmussenreports.com/public_content/about_us/methodology
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