Red Light Camera News Findlay, OH says NO to ATS RLC SCAM AFTER PUBLIC SPEAKS OUT!
(Thanks to www.stpetecameras.org for the link!)
Thursday, December 23, 2010
Traffic camera idea gets red light
By JOY BROWN
STAFF WRITER
Facing opposition from citizens and some City Council members, Findlay officials have put the brakes on installing cameras at the most dangerous intersections. The cameras would have been used to ticket motorists who run red lights.
"It's kind of a dead issue right now. There was some resistance to them," Safety Director Jim Barker said.
Administrators in March had announced that by summer, drivers would most likely see cameras placed at three busy Findlay intersections.
Arizona-based American Traffic Solutions was selected to install the cameras and issue tickets. Company representatives said fines collected would cover the $4,750 monthly fee for each camera, and any excess revenue would go to Findlay Police Department coffers.
If the fines didn't cover the camera fees, the fees would be waived, costing the city nothing, the company said. (Ban the Cams note: IF it were "safety" than why does ATS offer a "discount" ????? They know as well as many of the towns that RLC ARE NOT about safety ONE BIT! If they don't make enough for the town, the towns will CANCEL THEIR CONTRACTS!)
A citation for running a red light in Findlay costs violators $120.
Barker and police Chief Greg Horne said their main goal was to improve safety at the most accident-prone intersections, and not to generate revenue for the city.
Not everyone bought that argument.
"There were some council members who approached me and said they weren't in favor," Horne said this week.
"Some of the councilmen said they needed a little more information" about whether the cameras are effective and about the controversy surrounding them, Barker said.
"Are there other alternatives that are maybe less intrusive, that would accomplish the same intent?" K.C. Collette, 3rd Ward councilman, asked at a May meeting.
A memo that circulated among council members characterized such cameras as an "Orwellian threat to our privacy" and claimed that simply increasing the duration of yellow lights can drastically decrease or eliminate accidents at dangerous intersections.
Amending the city's traffic code to allow for citations to be issued for red light violations detected by cameras would have required City Council's approval.
Administrators also received several phone calls from citizens who opposed the cameras.
"Why put more of a financial burden on the residents of Findlay when studies prove they (cameras) do nothing for safety?" asked Brandon King, one of a handful of Findlay residents who protested the idea at an April council meeting.
Several cities in the United States, such as Toledo and Columbus, use the cameras, as do towns in other countries.
But critics have complained about receiving tickets for offenses others committed while driving their vehicles, raised concerns about privacy and civil liberties, and cited studies that claim the cameras actually cause more crashes.
"We're taking a step back, further evaluating and seeing what other communities are doing that have them," Barker said. "It seems to be all across the board. Some communities that have them are taking them out, and some that don't have them are adding them.
"I've advised (American Traffic Solutions) we are just going to put this on hold for the time being. We have a lot of things on our plate with the slow economic recovery and other things," Barker said. "This is not a priority but it's something we still have an interest in at some point."
Horne concurred, saying the failed effort doesn't bother him.
Horne said police have been stepping up traffic enforcement activities and issuing more citations, not only to reduce accidents, but to help address an increasing illegal drug problem in the city.
Horne said officers issued 2,174 traffic citations in 2009. As of Wednesday, they had issued 2,762 this year.
"The officers are being trained to look further into traffic stops by observing who's in the vehicle and what are they doing," Horne said. "I'd love to get a special assignment unit going for this reason, but our (staff) numbers are so depleted right now that I haven't been able to do it."
Brown: 419-427-8496,
Send an e-mail to Joy Brown
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