Taking on the Government Kansas City, MO: Activists Want Green Light to Remove Red Light Cameras
Activists Want Green Light to Remove Red Light Cameras
Topics
Activism
Rob Low, FOX 4 News
Christie Walton Web Producer
4:15 p.m. CDT, September 12, 2011
KANSAS CITY, Mo.— Some Kansas City activists are hope to eliminate Red Light Cameras. About 29 intersections in the Kansas City area have cameras waiting to record pictures of drivers who run red lights. Now, some hope to use a petition process to run red light cameras out of town.
Red light cameras are expected to generate $9.7 million for Kansas City in their first three years of operation. Nearly half of that will go to the vendor who installed them.
"We're simply supplying a means for someone to get out there and make a living on the backs of the drivers and taxpayers of Kansas City," said KC resident Sean O'Toole.
O'Toole wants to put the brakes on red light cameras. He and fellow supporters hope to collect some 3,500 signatures to put the issue before Kansas City voters in February of 2012. Even if they get the green light and succeed at the ballot box, the city council could simply repeal the measure.
"I think in time, it may take a couple of runs through this," O'Toole said." I think in time the city council will be worn down. I think motorists are tired of this sort of thing and taxpayers are certainly tired of it."
"The police perspective on the red light cameras is to keep intersections safe," said Sgt. Stacey Graves with Kansas City Police.
Sgt. Graves says the Kansas City Police are convinced red light cameras are reducing accidents. She points out every intersection that uses the cameras one has a warning sign. The police board recently announced that accidents are down in 28 of the 29 intersections.
"We're looking for the people that are blanatly running red lights, recklessly driving through intersections," Graves said.
Red light camera critics say city engineers could reduce accidents without imposing $100 fines.
"Either extending yellows, or overlapping the red lights so that you've got a period of time where there is no traffic in the intersection," he said.
Kansas City Police issued more than 41,000 red light tickets in the past year. That's after officers tossed out a third of the incidents because they weren't blatant enough.
(Ban the Cams note: Increasing the rejection rate??? Will Kansas City try to claim "success". WE have seen this stunt before in Baytown you know just before a vote!)
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