Red Light Cameras KILL!
IIHS “Lives Saved” Study is a FRAUD!
Spring 2011
Summary
By Greg Mauz

More people everyday are learning that camera enforcement (for red lights and speed limits) is a total fraud.  Courts, legislators and voter referendums have banned cameras in 15 states and 39 cities, with more pending.

Camera promoters desperately need some good P.R.  Along comes the Insurance Institute for “Highway Safety”, the lobbyist for 95 auto insurers that usurp $billions from traffic enforcement, including cameras.

Despite the serious conflict of interest, the national media presented – without even seeing it – the IIHS’s new study “results” on February 1, 2011.   Red light cameras “saved 83 Lives” (“159 with spillover effect “ – a lie)  along with a “-35% reduction in red light running fatal crash rates.”  Biased speculation ludicrously claimed 815 lives would be saved with cameras everywhere.

The study is a FRAUD.  IIHS authors carefully cherry picked camera sites (only 14 of 175 choices in 2004) and years of statistics.  The before camera period, 1992-1996, starts with a record safe [recession] year.  The after period, 2004-2008, ends with the next record safe [Great Recession] year, while skipping valid comparison years 1997 – 2003.  Years are NOT listed individually and city camera sites are NOT analyzed separately from the more numerous [safer] non-camera signal intersections.

Of the 14 cities chosen to politically endorse the $8 billion camera industry, three incurred huge increases of red light violation and all signal-related fatal crashes.  Two had way less than average improvements and seven contained serious integrity problems.  For example, IIHS alleges that Washington, D.C. scored an -11% improvement in signal-related fatal crash rates.  However, D.C.’s own study (2005) reported an +81% increase of injury/fatal crashes (+118).

Then, to further cheat on the results, a per capita rate (per 100,000 residents) was misapplied.  The recession created less real world risk (-110 billion vehicle miles driven, Federal Highway Administration).  Population rates provide the illusion of more risk.  Not honest research.  These per capita rates often unethically inflate crash % improvements, while deflating crash % increases.  Example:  Bakersfield (with RLTCs) had +130% increase in RLV fatal crashes (7 before versus 16 after).  With population rate applied, the percentage plummets to +55%.

Removing the spin-doctoring, the false claim of -35% becomes -27% RLV fatal crashes and signal-related fatal crashes change from -14% to only -4% (739 before vs. 707 after) or LESS than normal regression trends – a failure NOT a success story.  It also questions the validity of the before RLV data.

Other methodology flaws included poisson regression, misinterpretations and biased speculations.

“Cameras save lives” is a heinous LIE.  The seven different analyses [results] in “Camera Enforcement – A Picture of Fraud” (52 pages, 2007) remain true.  ALL national statistical evidence is against cameras.

There occurred at least 665 more ALL U.S. signal-related fatalities (2001-2007) when cameras proliferated from 40 cities to over 300.  Rear-end fatal crashes (+12%), Angles (+10.9%), RLV and control sites all concur that cameras kill.  So do 40 camera studies (“Charting a Catastrophic Failure”).

Florida-without ticket cameras- easily outscores the bogus IIHS study with 141 lives saved (2001-2005).

To save lives, freedom and justice ALL American leaders need to permanently ban ticket cameras from our Country.  To further increase safety mandate longer yellows (+1 sec. = -70% violations/30-50% less crashes), better Drivers Education, 85th percentile speed limits, and improved DWI enforcement.

Greg Mauz is an honest (no $$$ conflicts) traffic safety researcher with 25 years experience and volunteer Activist with the Best Highway Safety Practices Institute.  This is his 9th Camera Enforcement Report.   See complete report and other research @www.bhspi.org/mauz or call 325-896-2595.  Google Greg Mauz.

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Red Light Cameras KILL Summary 3 1 2011.pdf

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