Red Light Camera News Red-light camera employee flub adds fuel to growing fire
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http://www.fifefreepress.com/news/city/red_light_camera_employee_flub_adds_fuel_to_growing_fire/
Red-light camera employee flub adds fuel to growing fire
By Jill Russell
FifeFreePress.com
Photo by Jill RussellFife's red light enforcement cameras have under fire after an employee of the camera operator company gave false information regarding stop wait times.
The City of Fife’s red light photo enforcement cameras have come under fire again after a driver who received a photo enforcement citation was given false information regarding red light wait times.
The controversy began with a letter to The News Tribune from Karla Hopkins of Mount Vernon. Hopkins’ husband received a $124 ticket in the mail from a Fife camera for an improper right turn, The News Tribune reported.
Hopkins reviewed the traffic video online, and then called the city-contracted Redflex Customer Service Call Center to ask about the violation. After a call center representative reviewed the video, Hopkins said she was told her husband did not come to a complete stop for 4.5 seconds, the newspaper reported.
However, city and state law makes no mention of any wait time rule, city officials said.
“There is not a 4.5-second rule in place,” said Sally Jacobsen, municipal court administrator for the City of Fife. “We go strictly by the state statute.”
A Redflex call center employee, who takes questions and complaints about photo enforcement tickets, misstated the information, she said.
Representatives from the Redflex Camera Systems apologized to Fife City Council March 22 and attempted to clear the air about any incorrect information.
“The employee went off script, made a human mistake and said some things that were incorrect,” said Bob Warner, account director of Redflex Camera Systems. “There is no such thing as a 4.5-second stop rule. Not in Fife and not in Washington." The call center employee has since been disciplined for the misstatement, and the company re-educated its staff on “how a seemingly offhanded comment can steamroll and snowball into something far greater than anyone expected," Warner said.
Council members were frustrated by the mistake, especially since many public attitudes toward the city’s camera program have grown increasingly sour.
“It needs to be clear that we are not the ones responsible,” Councilmember Pat Hulcey said. “You almost could have painted the target on our backs.” According to state law (RCW 46.61.055), drivers are allowed to make right turns, but they must stop “to allow other vehicles lawfully within or approaching the intersection to complete their movements.” The law does not mention any specific time limit for complete stops.
In Fife, red light cameras take two photographs of vehicles, only if the driver enters the intersection after the light has turned red.
The possible violations are screened by Redflex, and then sent to the city where a police officer reviews them.
Police Chief Brad Blackburn said the most common violation is not coming to a complete stop on right-hand turns, which is illegal, he added.
“If drivers come to a complete stop before the line, then move, the camera would not take their picture,” Blackburn said.
Drivers who disagree with their tickets can contest them in Fife Municipal Court.
Warner insists the camera system performed correctly and that this was a “human mistake.” He also said Fife Police Department and its officials never instructed Redflex employees about any 4.5-second rule on stops.
“We truly regret this happened,” he said. Amidst the controversy, Warner pointed out how cameras positively impacted the city by reducing crashes and changing driver behavior.
Overall, vehicle crashes have reduced by nearly 38 percent, and the number of citations fell by 30 percent from December 2009 to December 2010, he said. “We’re very proud of that success,” Warner said. “It indicates that we are becoming successful in educating drivers and changing driver behavior. That’s really what our program is all about."
Mayor Barry Johnson noted, after operation costs, all the money generated by the camera program funds pedestrian safety improvements, including adding street lighting and sidewalks.
However, most council members were less than optimistic about the lasting negative perceptions the incident will leave.
“This incident stripped within our public all credibly in this program,” Councilmember Richard Godwin said. “I’m not really happy with you folks right now.”
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