Port Richey hires new traffic spy

PORT RICHEY — The city has hired a new set of eyes to watch for red-light runners at its busiest intersections.

The City Council agreed last week to let Jacksonville-based Traffipax install its own camera at U.S. 19 and Ridge Road, pointing toward the three southbound lanes of the highway. It would replace a camera at the same spot by American Traffic Solutions, which backed out of its contract with the city in August.

Traffipax also plans to install a camera overseeing the three northbound lanes at that intersection.

The details of the Traffipax contract, including how the traffic ticket revenue will be divided and how soon the cameras will go up, will be ironed out by City Attorney Michael Brannigan in the coming weeks, said police Chief David Brown. The contract may also include installing cameras at U.S. 19 and Grand Boulevard, and at Leo Kidd Avenue and Ridge Road, Brown said.

"We'd like more intersections to be monitored, because it helps diminish crashes and save lives," Brown said. "Is there a monetary incentive for the city? Yes. But we expect you to be a good driver and abide by state law."

On May 2, the city began issuing tickets to red-light runners caught on the American Traffic Solution camera at U.S. 19 and Ridge Road. Port Richey became the first in Pasco and third in the state — behind Apopka and Gulf Breeze — to use the cameras.

The camera takes two pictures of the vehicle and its license plate — one right before the vehicle is at the white line, and another as it crosses the white line and enters the intersection.

Of the $125 citation, $85 goes to the city's general fund, and $40 to ATS.

Since May 2, Port Richey has issued about 1,900 citations, netting $109,565 for the city's general fund, according to the Police Department.

But the program hit a speed bump in August, when ATS backed out of its five-year contract with the city.

The company said then it was "unable to obtain permits to install additional red light cameras on Florida Department of Transportation and other rights of way, which prevented further expansion of the program."

Officials at ATS agreed to keep their camera in place until another company was hired.

Josh Weiss, spokesman for ATS, said his company rebid on the project after resolving its issues regarding installing additional cameras, although he declined to elaborate on what those issues had been.

The council voted unanimously last week to switch to Traffipax instead of keeping ATS.

Gulf Breeze, which uses Traffipax, says the system has operated smoothly since the city began using it in March 2006.

Since then, 4,000 citations have been issued at $100 each. The city keeps about half of that revenue, said Gulf Breeze police Chief Peter Paulding.

Two cameras on U.S. 98 and Daniel Drive track about 60,000 cars heading eastbound and westbound every day, Paulding said.

"Most crashes in the city happen on that roadway," he said.

Back in Port Richey, Mayor Richard Rober says the program has brought greater caution and safety to a major intersection in the city.

"I won't say it's a cure-all," Rober said, "but it definitely helps."

Camille C. Spencer can be reached at cspencer@sptimes.com or (727) 869-6229.

Red light cameras far from perfect

More than 7,000 drivers were cited for running red lights in Temple Terrace since the city installed new cameras in mid October, but a third of the tickets were tossed by the city, tampabays10.com reports.

Tammy Jackson has gotten three citations for running a red light at Bullard Parkway and 56th Street and is irate because she says she stopped at the light before making a turn. Her ticket shows her brake lights on before she went through the intersection, but a video shows she didn't come to a complete stop.

The new cameras are just a way for the city to generate revenue, Jackson contends.The city gets 60 percent of the money from citations, while the company that owns the cameras gets the rest. The city says it's about safety, not money.

Since the cameras were installed on Oct. 16, the city has sent out 4,787 citations at $100 each. At the current rate, the city would make $2.4-million dollars in the first year of operation.

The Hillsborough County Commission voted in March to begin installing the cameras on county roads. Port Richey installed its first red light cameras in March. Brooksville voted in April to install them.

Red light camera company backs out of contract

In just a few short months, the red light camera at U.S. 19 and Ridge Road has been a success for the city, raking in thousands of dollars from traffic tickets and making drivers think twice about gunning it through one of Pasco's busiest intersections.

So officials were surprised to find out this week that the Arizona-based company that installed the camera is backing out of its five-year contract with the city.

City Manager Richard Reade said, "both sides said it was probably best to end the agreement," but wouldn't elaborate.

But according to a brief statement from American Traffic Solutions, the problem was getting permission to install additional cameras.

The ATS statement released Thursday said the company "was unable to obtain permits to install additional red light cameras on FDOT (Florida Department of Transportation) and other rights of way, which prevented further expansion of the program."

It's against the law to place the cameras on state-owned property along the road, said state Department of Transportation spokeswoman Kris Carson.

But it's okay to put them on private property, with the owner's permission. ATS got permission several months ago from Denny's to place its camera at U.S. 19 and Ridge Road, angled to catch southbound drivers.

City officials discussed placing additional cameras on city property at two other intersections — Grand Boulevard and U.S. 19, and Leo Kidd Avenue and Ridge Road — but had yet to do so.

It's unknown whether ATS ended its contract because it ran into problems at those two intersections.

But city officials want to keep the camera they have at U.S. 19 and Ridge Road.

That camera will remain in place until the city contracts with another company, said ATS spokesman Josh Weiss.

When Port Richey police began issuing tickets May 2 using the red light camera, the city became the first in Pasco and the third in the state — behind Apopka and Gulf Breeze — to use the ATS system.

Since then, police have issued hundreds of citations at $125 each, raising about $15,130 as of July.

The camera takes two pictures of the vehicle and its license plate — one right before the vehicle is at the white line and another as it crosses the white line and enters the intersection.

An officer watching streaming video on a computer decides whether the driver has run the red light. If so, the officer sends a ticket. Drivers can go online and see the footage themselves.

Reade said he plans to review other cities' red light camera systems before signing a contract with another company.

To be sure the city moves swiftly, Reade plans to discuss the red light camera soon with city officials.

"You'll see a proposal, probably to piggyback on another city's contract, at the next meeting," Reade said.

by Camille C. Spencer

What is a "Snitch Ticket"?

This post is about a scam coming from a place you would never expect it, your local police department. They send out fake red light camera "tickets."They call them Nominations. I call them Snitch Tickets.
If the document you received does not give the name of the Court and its street address and phone number, or if it says, "Do not contact the Court," it may not be a real ticket. It could be a fake - a Snitch Ticket - generated by the police.

A real ticket will tell you to contact ("Respond to") the court . . .and you should.Your ticket is a real one if you can look it up on the court's website. But please note -(a) If it's not on their site, it still could be real! Or, it could be a fake, a Snitch Ticket.(b) Make sure you are looking on the court's website, not the one where you go to look at the ticket pictures (which is operated by the camera company).Your ticket is real if you've received a Courtesy Notice from the court. But please note -(a) You could still have a real ticket even if you haven't received a Courtesy Notice.(b) A Courtesy Notice will never tell you to contact anyone but the court.Your ticket could be real even if the court's phone number is missing and its address is incomplete. That's because some cities are leaving that info off their real tickets, to make it harder for defendants to fight their ticket in court.

Snitch Tickets are designed to look very much like a real ticket - but are legally very different. To add to the confusion caused by the similar looks, real tickets and Snitch Tickets both ask the registered owner to turn-in (or snitch on) the person who was driving the car. Despite all that, there are some differences that you can rely on. One of the best "tells" is that most Snitch Tickets will say, in small print on the back of the page, "Do not contact the court about this notice." Snitch Tickets also lack any wording directing you to contact or "Respond to" the court. In fact, on a typical Snitch Ticket there is no phone number for the court, and the court's address usually is missing or incomplete. (Please note, however, that in some towns the real tickets carry an incomplete address.

The police are going to great lengths to get registered owners to identify who was driving their car. In those towns, if the technicians reviewing the photos see that the pictured driver is obviously not the registered owner (gender mismatch, great difference in age, or a rental car) or that the photo is too blurry to be sure of who it is, one tactic they use is to send the registered owner an official-looking notice telling him that he must identify the driver.

Many cities use RedFlex as their camera vendor and have contract terms which give either the city or RedFlex (or both) a big monetary incentive to issue more tickets. When the police are first processing the photos and they see that the face photo is obviously** not the registered owner, or that it is of such poor quality that it would probably not be accepted by a judge as proof of who the driver was, they sometimes send the registered owner a notice ("Snitch Ticket") - which the City doesn't have to pay RedFlex for. Sending you the Snitch Ticket is the police's attempt to get you to identify the driver, thus providing the proof they need. Once you have filled-out the blanks on the Snitch Ticket form, the police can be pretty sure that a ticket will stick and that they will be able to recoup the $90 it will cost them to have a real one issued. So they go ahead and have RedFlex issue (print up and mail) one.Contracts signed after Jan. 1, 2004 cannot, by law, provide for a per-ticket payment to the vendor. It has to be "flat-rate." A typical flat-rate contract requires the city to pay the vendor a rent of $6070 per month per camera. Even though the city is not paying for each ticket issued, their need to recoup the rent gives them a big incentive to issue more tickets that will stick.

Probably the biggest reason Snitch Tickets work so well is that they take advantage of your trust and confidence in the police. "Confidence" is the first word in "con man."From an Internet newsgroup discussion:Post-er # 1: "BS. It is self-evident that any so-called citation which doesn't tell you when and where to challenge it in court, is not a legal ticket."Post-er # 2: " 'Self-evident' only to those of us who have been pulled over by a cop and given a regular ('good old fashioned') ticket a few times. I admit that that describes me. I suspect it describes you, too. You and I know what a real ticket says and what it orders you to do. But there are at least two groups of people who don't have that knowledge.1. Your auntie, who never has had a ticket in her life, until now she gets one in the mail. (Cameras with too-short yellows tend to catch mature people, who drive at moderate speeds. The young lead-foots are going fast enough to make it through on a short yellow.)2. People here from another country where tickets are handled in another fashion, such as by payment directly to the officer who pulled you over. That's not just Mexico, by the way."The Media Cover-upSnitch Tickets are working because the Mainstream Media (TV, radio, newspapers, magazines) is afraid to write about them; doing so would get the police mad at them, and the media gets many of its story "leads" from the police.

Canada: Intersection Cameras

The citizens of Manitoba are not death crazed scofflaws blowing through red lights as a hobby as some officials and media would have you believe. In fact fatalities caused by red light running are a are extremely rare, maybe one every few years if that. If we take Century and Silver as an example of a busy intersection we find a red light violation rate that ,in a bad month is around 45 violation. This intersection sees some 47,000 vehicles per day (weekday counts). This gives us some where over 1,000,000 vehicles through this intersection per month. Now consider that over 80% of all red light violations occur with in the first few tenths of a second and can be considered non dangerous, as most intersections have a 2 second all red phase. This means that less then 9 violations out of 1,000,000 can even be considered dangerous, and only a small fraction of these ever result in a collision. Other then anecdotal public opinion the police have failed horribly in proving any increase in red light running or for the need for RLCs.
Winnipeg streets get safer every year. Collision, injuries and fatalities have been constant or have declined almost every single year since records have been kept.
When you take into consideration that there are more drivers driving more kilometers every year, and thus more chances for collisions to happen, it is amazing to see a steady and ongoing trend towards safer streets. The only noticeable change is a slight increase in non injury collisions. While most people will agree that some days it doesn't seem like the roads are safer in fact they are. Most of the perceived issues, I believe, stem from ignorant, impolite and poorly trained drivers and the fact that our street are poorly maintained/engineered and are more crowed then ever before. These things that photo enforcement cannot counter act.There are presently 48 intersection cameras that will have issued almost 300,000 tickets!! Well, that should equate to a whopping jump in safety. Strange the death and injury rate has not changed in the past few years . The city auditors report on photo enforcement notes large increases in collisions at monitored intersections, as compared to a 7% average increase for non monitored intersections (Auditors report). Well not that surprising..... Studies going back 10 years and more have shown little or no safety benefits to red light photo enforcement. Virtually the only ones showing any benefits have been done or paid for by parties that have something to gain, like the police, insurance companies, governments etc.
So RLC's are not the answer (at least from a safety stand point). What can be done? The simplest thing is lengthen the yellow light cycle! Seems only obvious and it is simple to do and costs next to nothing to implement. How big of an improvement can this make on violations?, and do not people just get used to it and start running more reds as time goes on? The answers are huge and no, yet the city refuses to change yellow light timings despite the overwhelming evidence that it can dramatically reduce red light violations. A test in Virginia saw a reduction in violation of some 96% when the yellow light was lengthened by 1.5 second. The RLC was removed and three years later this very wide intersection has kept this reduction almost intact at 90% reduction despite a rapid population growth in the area. While this is an extreme case adjustments of a few tenths of a second can often reduce violations by 30%-70%. The city is on record as being unwilling to change light timing at monitored intersections. The city also refuses to make its contract with ACS public despite a Freedom of Information application. Contracts in other locations have often had clauses in them that prevent the city from changing any aspects of the intersections including light timing. A quick check I did some time ago shows that of Winnipeg's 24 (original) cameras 75% are 1km or more away from any of Winnipeg 30 most dangerous intersections and over 62% are several kilometers or more away from any intersection of note. It certainly does not look like the police are very concerned about safety, judging by their camera placement. There is in fact no documented policy to determine where a camera goes, so the police are allowed to place them where the most money can be made.
Many people believe falsely that photo enforcement is widely supported. One of the studies done by the NHTSA (National Survey of speeding and other unsafe driving actions, Volume III countermeasures, by John Boyle) in the US said there was a 70% support for photo enforcement, similar to the 71% claimed for Winnipeg. What is not promoted is that 35% of respondents had never heard of photo enforcement. The other 65% maintained varying degrees of knowledge on the subject. Keep in mind that these survey questions are often supplied by the camera vendors to elicit a positive response, and that no camera program has yet to pass a free vote by the public in North America. I think it is safe to say there are but a select few in our city who actually have any factual information regarding these so-called safety devices and their alternatives. Lets face the facts most of the respondents could not provide a qualified answer to the question. Most drivers can’t even tell you the size of their tires or engines in their cars let alone anything about photo enforcement other then what the proponents spout courtesy of your tax dollars and the willing media. If the questions asked by the Winnipeg Free Press/ Probe Research poll had been stated differently, or if some attempt to present unbiased information was made, the results would be VERY different. This is very misleading ruse that helps dampen the public back lash as most people now believe they are in the minority if they disagree, when in fact they’re not.
One of the studies often quoted (and used to promote our program) by the proponents of automated enforcement is the Oxnard, California, study (IIHS April 26, 2001). This insurance industry-sponsored study made great claims, purportedly showing RLCs reduce crashes. There are major issues with this report, including the fact that no specific crash types were identified (red light running accidents are not even identified). RLC intersections were not analyzed separate for the other intersections either. The study claims a 5.4% over all reduction in intersections crashes and a 40% reduction of RLV’s, (Red Light Violations) at the 11 monitored intersections. Santa Barbra, a neighboring town with out cameras saw a 10.2% reduction in overall collisions! Further more lengthening of yellow lights can reduce RLVs as much as and often many times more than enforcement and this is also acknowledged in this study. The study also had to redefine the definitions of intersection approaches from 100 ft prior to the intersection to the cross walk in order to hide the increase in rear end accidents that occurred. Perhaps the best and most comprehensive study on RLCs was done in Melbourne Australia, by David Andreassen, covering 10 years and 41 camera sites done over 10 years ago( this study was not considered by the police). The study could find no correlation between monitored intersections and non monitored intersections, other then a large increase in rear end collisions, and, contrary to expectations an increase in red light collisions at many sites! Many other locations found similarly poor results when the data is properly analyzed.
The three main bodies of information the city used in its decision to roll out photo enforcement were the Oxnard study, the Washington, DC, police department, and The National Campaign to Stop Red Light Running (http://www.stopredlightrunning.com). We have covered the first two to some degree, so let's look at this site. At first it appears to be an grass roots organization like MADD, but for red light runners. Impressive enough. Look deeply and you will find that that it is a lobby organization funded and founded by camera vendors, the biggest contributor being none other then our own contractor, ACS! It quickly becomes clear the police/city did nothing more then look at pro -camera information provided by the vendors and did nothing that could be described as an "evaluation" or "study". The only thing that was studied was how to implement the program with the least amount of public backlash.

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "W"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Washington
Auburn R
Bremerton R S
Burien R S
Fife R
Lacey R
Lakewood R
Lynnwood R
Monroe R S
Moses Lake R
Mountlake Terrace R
Puyallup R
SeaTac R
Seattle R
Tacoma R S

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "T"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Tennessee
Chattanooga S
Gallatin R
Germantown R
Jackson R S
Kingsport R
Knoxville R
Morristown R
Mount Carmel S
Red Bank R S
Selmer R S

Texas
Allen R
Arlington R
Austin R
Balch Springs R
Balcones Heights R
Bedford R
Burleson R
Carrolton R
Cedar Hill R
College Station R
Coppell R
Corpus Christi R
Dallas R
Dalworthington Gardens R
Denton R
Duncanville R
El Paso R
Farmers Branch R
Forney R
Fort Worth R
Frisco R
Garland R
Grand Prairie R
Granite Shoals R
Halton R
Harlingen R
Houston R
Humble R
Huntington R
Hurst R
Hutto R
Irving R
Jersey Village R
Killeen R
Lake Jackson R
Lancaster R
Lewisville R
Longview R
Lubbock R
Lufkin R
Marshall R
McKinney R
Mesquite R
Mission R
Montgomery County R
North Richland Hills R
Oak Ridge North R
Plano R
Port Lavaca R
Richardson R
Richland Hills R
Roanoke R
Rowlett R
Southlake R
Sugar Land R
Terrell R
Tomball R
University Park R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "P through S"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Pennsylvania
Philadelphia R

Rhode Island
Providence R

South Dakota
Sioux Falls R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "O"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Ohio
Akron S
Cleveland R
Columbus R
Dayton R
East Cleveland S
Middletown R
Northwood R S
Springfield R
Sylvania Township R
Toledo R S
Trotwood R

Oregon
Albany R
Beaverton R S
Medford R S
Newberg R
Portland R S
Salem R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "N"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

New Mexico
Albuquerque R S

New York
New York City R

North Carolina
Cary R
Knightdale R
Raleigh R
Rocky Mount R
Wilmington R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "M"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Maryland
Annapolis R
Anne Arundel R
Baltimore City R
Baltimore County R
Bel Air R
Bladensburg R
Bowie R
Brentwood R
Charles County R
Cheverly R
College Park R
Colmar Manor R
Cottage City R
Forest Heights R
Frederick R
Greenbelt R
Howard County R
Hyattsville R
Laurel R
Landover Hills R
Montgomery County R S
Morningside R
New Carrollton R
Prince Georges County R
Riverdale Park R
Rockville R

Massachusetts
Blackstone S

Mississippi
Columbus R
Jackson R
Tupelo R

Missouri
Arnold R
Bellerive R
Beverly Hills R
Brentwood R
Creve Coeur R
Dellwood R
Edmundson R
Festus R
Florissant R
Gladstone R
Hannibal R
Hazelwood R
Moline Acres R
Springfield R
St. Charles R
St. John R
St. Louis R
St. Peters R
Sugar Creek R
Washington R
Wentzville R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "L"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Louisiana
Baker R
Baton Rouge R
Broussard R S
Gretna R S
Jefferson Parish R
Lafayette R S
Livingston Parish R S
New Orleans R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "I"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Illinois
statewide work zones S
Alsip R
Aurora R
Bellwood R
Burbank R
Cahokia R
Calumet City R
Carol Stream R
Chicago R
Countryside R
Elk Grove R
Evergreen Park R
Forest Park R
Geneva R
Gurnee R
Lyons R
New Lenox R
North Chicago R
North Riverside R
Northfield R
Northlake R
Oak Lawn R
Olympia Fields R
Orland Park R
Palos Heights R
Richton Park R
South Holland R
St. Charles R
Stickney R
Tinley Park R
Waukegan R

Iowa
Clive R
Council Bluffs R
Davenport R S
Sioux City R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "G"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Georgia
Alpharetta R
Athens-Clarke County R
Atlanta R
Brunswick R
Dalton R
Decatur R
Duluth R
Fulton County R
Georgetown R
Griffin R
Gwinnett County R
Hapeville R
Lilburn R
Marietta R
Morrow R
Moultrie R
Rome R
Savannah R
Snellville R
Suwanee R
Thomasville R
Tifton R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "F"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Florida
Apopka R
Gulf Breeze R
North Miami R
Palm Coast R
Pembroke Pines R
Port Richey R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "D"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!
R = red light camera; S = speed camera

Delaware
Dover R
Elsmere R
Newark R
Seaford R
Wilmington R

District of Columbia R S

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "C"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!

R = red light camera; S = speed camera

California
Arleta R
Bakersfield R
Baldwin Park R
Belmont R
Berkeley R
Beverly Hills R
Burlingame R
Capitola R
Cathedral City R
Cerritos R
Citrus Heights R
Commerce R
Compton R
Costa Mesa R
Covina R
Culver City R
Cupertino R
Daly City R
Davis R
Del Mar R
El Cajon R
El Monte R
Elk Grove R
Emeryville R
Encinitas R
Escondido R
Fairfield R
Fremont R
Fresno R
Fullerton R
Garden Grove R
Gardena R
Glendale R
Grand Terrace R
Hawthorne R
Hayward R
Highland R
Indian Wells R
Inglewood R
Laguna Woods R
Lancaster R
Loma Linda R
Los Alamitos R
Los Angeles City R
Los Angeles County R
Lynwood R
Marysville R
Maywood R
Menlo Park R
Millbrae R
Modesto R
Montclair R
Montebello R
Moreno Valley R
Murrieta R
Napa R
Newark R
Oakland R
Oceanside R
Oroville R
Oxnard R
Pasadena R
Poway R
Rancho Cucamonga R
Redding R
Redlands R
Redwood City R
Ridgecrest R
Rio Vista R
Riverside R
Rocklin R
Roseville R
Sacramento City R
Sacramento County R
San Bernardino R
San Carlos R
San Diego R
San Francisco R
San Jose S
San Juan Capistrano R
San Leandro R
San Mateo R
Santa Ana R
Santa Clarita R
Santa Fe Springs R
Santa Maria R
Solana Beach R
South Gate R
South San Francisco R
Stockton R
Union City R
Upland R
Ventura R
Victorville R
Vista R
Walnut R
West Hollywood R
Whittier R
Yuba City R
Yucaipa R

Colorado
Aurora R
Boulder R S
Denver RS
Fort Collins R S
Greenwood Village R
Lone Tree R
Northglenn R
Pueblo R

Cities in the US that use red light cameras- State begins with "A"

Please note- this list is always growing. Please comment if your town or city is not included and also uses the cameras!

R = red light camera; S = speed camera


Alabama
Montgomery R

Arizona
Arizona Department of Public Safety S
Avondale R
Chandler R S
Glendale R
Mesa R S
Paradise Valley R S
Phoenix R S
Pinal County S
Peoria R
Prescott Valley R S
Scottsdale R S
Star Valley S
Tempe R S
Tucson R S

Frequently asked Questions about Red Light Cameras

How Do Red Light Cameras Work?
A red light camera system is connected to the traffic signal and to sensors buried in the pavement at the crosswalk or stop line. Traffic engineers determine the criteria that will trigger the camera to photograph a vehicle. Red light cameras usually only photograph the license tag of the vehicle, but they also can photograph the driver. Typically, two photographs are taken, one when the vehicle crosses the stop line and a second when the vehicle is in the intersection. The photographs also include the date, time and place, vehicle speed, and elapsed time from the light turning red to the time the photograph was taken.

False Alarm? Making A Right Turn? Caught In The Intersection?
To avoid photographing the vehicles of drivers who inadvertently get caught in the intersection, traffic engineers program the system to photograph only those vehicles that are moving in excess of a predetermined speed and that enter the intersection a predetermined time after the signal has turned red. The minimum speed criteria eliminates the possibility of issuing citations for vehicles making legal turns on red or those that are stopped in traffic before clearing the intersection. Drivers who enter on yellow and find themselves in an intersection when the light changes to red are not photographed. The technology is intended to catch vehicles driven by motorists who intentionally enter an intersection after the signal has turned red.

How Do Speed Cameras Work?
Speed enforcement systems, also known as photo-radar, are triggered when a vehicle exceeding the speed limit by a predetermined amount is observed. Like red light cameras, speed cameras generate photographic evidence that gives the date, time and place, and vehicle speed.

Verification
The pictures taken by road-rule enforcement cameras must usually be viewed by a person before any infringement notice or ticket is issued to the driver, and judged to be satisfactory or not. This step is known as verification, and is a standard legal requirement in nearly all jurisdictions. Verifiers typically must check some or all of the following:
no sign of interference with the vehicle detector by objects other than the vehicle
license plate readable according to a legal standard
make and model of vehicle matches the recorded license plate nunber
appearance of the driver in the images is adequate or that it matches the picture on the drivers license of the vehicle's registered owner.

How Is A Ticket Processed?
Most electronic flash cameras produce clear images of vehicles under all light and weather conditions. Photographs are carefully reviewed by trained police officers or other officials to verify vehicle information and ensure the vehicle was in violation. Tickets are mailed to vehicle owners only in cases where it is clear the vehicle ran the red light. Typically this process takes one to three weeks and fines range from $50 in some states up to $400.

Will I Get Points On My Driving Record?
A few states treat automated enforcement citations just like parking tickets in that the registered owner is liable. Similarly, just as parking tickets do not result in points and are not recorded on a driver's record, many states do not assess points or make a record of automated enforcement citations.

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How does PhotoBlocker Spray work?
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How Red-light Cameras Work- pt 3

Running the Red Light

As we saw in the previous post, a red-light-camera system is controlled by a computer. To see how these computers bring everything together, let's look at a typical intersection and a typical traffic violation.

The central control box houses the computer, the brains of the system. The computer activates the cameras based on information it receives from the traffic lights and triggers.

For simplicity's sake, we'll only consider traffic moving in one direction through this intersection. When the light is green or yellow for incoming traffic, the computer ignores the triggers and does not activate the cameras. The system doesn't "turn on" until it receives a signal that the light is red. If you're already in the middle of the intersection when the light turns red, the system will not activate the cameras (this is not a traffic violation in most areas). Some systems wait a fraction of a second after the light turns red, to give drivers a "grace period."

In most systems, the computer will not activate the cameras if a car is just sitting over the induction loops. To trigger the cameras, you have to move over the loops at a particular speed. In most systems, there are two loop triggers for each lane of traffic. When the triggers are both activated in quick succession, the computer knows a car has moved into the intersection at high speed. If there is more of a delay, the computer knows the car is moving more slowly. If the car activates only the first trigger, the computer knows it is stopped at the edge of the intersection.

When a car activates both triggers after the light is red, the computer automatically takes a picture. This first shot shows the car just as it is entering the intersection. The computer then hesitates briefly and takes another shot. This catches the car in the middle of the intersection. The computer calculates the length of the delay based on the measured speed of the car. It's important to get two pictures of the car to show that it entered the intersection when the light was red and then proceeded through the intersection.

To fully document the violation, the computer superimposes some extra information on these two photos. It includes:

• The date
• The time
• The intersection location
• The speed of the car
• The elapsed time between when the light turned red and the car entered the intersection

The camera is connected to the computer via long, durable wires. The camera feeds digital pictures to the computer, which stores them in its memory.

With all of the information superimposed on the picture, along with photos of the infraction, the police have everything they need to charge the driver. In most areas, the police, or a private firm hired to maintain the system, simply look up the license plate and send the ticket in the mail. The driver (or car owner) can pay the fine through the mail and be done with it or he or she can try to contest the ticket in court. Of course, the police send the photos along with the ticket, so most drivers end up just paying the fine.

Red-light cameras have been around for more than 40 years, but they've only gained widespread popularity in the past decade. Police forces all over the world claim that these systems are a great addition to their communities. They serve as a deterrent against traffic violations, and they help police keep track of the worst offenders. Additionally, they are a good source of government revenue. It doesn't cost much to maintain the system once it's installed, and it works 24 hours a day, seven days a week, systematically catching violators and sending out revenue-generating traffic tickets that are really hard to contest.

How Red-light Cameras Work- pt 2

The Triggers

There are a number of trigger technologies, but they all serve the same purpose: They detect when a car has moved past a particular point in the road. Red-light systems typically have two induction-loop triggers positioned under the road near the stop line (more on this later).

The computer is the brains behind the operation. It is wired to the cameras, the triggers and the traffic-light circuit itself. The computer constantly monitors the traffic signal and the triggers. If a car sets off a trigger when the light is red, the computer takes two pictures to document the violation. The first picture shows the car just on the edge of the intersection and the second picture shows the car in the middle of the intersection.

Most modern red-light-camera systems use digital cameras. Older ones use 35-mm cameras, in which case the film has to be collected for development periodically.

In some states, a ticket is issued to the car's owner, no matter who's actually driving. In these states, the red-light camera only needs to photograph the car from behind, since the authorities only need a clear view of the rear license plate. In other states, the actual driver is responsible for paying the ticket. In this case, the system needs a second camera in front of the car, in order to get a shot of the driver's face. The ticket is still sent to the car's owner, but the authorities have the information available if there is any disagreement down the line.

The main trigger technology used in red-light systems is the induction loop. An induction-loop trigger is a length of electrical wire buried just under the asphalt. Usually, the wire is laid out in a couple of rectangular loops resting on top of each other (see diagram below).

This wire is hooked up to an electrical power source and a meter. If you've read How Electromagnets Work, you know that when you send electrical current through a wire, it generates a magnetic field. Positioning the wire in concentric loops, as in any electromagnet, amplifies this field.

When a car drives over an induction loop, it disturbs the loop's electromagnetic field. This changes the total inductance of the loop circuit.

This sort of field affects not only objects around the loop, but also the loop itself. The magnetic field induces an electrical voltage in the wire that is counter to the voltage of the circuit as a whole. This significantly alters the flow of current through the circuit.

The intensity of this induction depends on the structure and composition of the loop; changing the layout of the wires or using a different conductive material (metal) will change the loop's inductance. You can also change the inductance by introducing additional conductive materials into the loop's magnetic field. This is what happens when a car pulls up to the intersection. The huge mass of metal that makes up your car alters the magnetic field around the loop, changing its inductance.

Construction crews cut into the asphalt to install loop sensors. You can see where a loop was installed at this intersection.

The meter in the system constantly monitors the total inductance level of the circuit. When the inductance changes significantly, the computer recognizes this shift and knows that a car has passed over the loop.

This is the most common trigger mechanism, but it's not the only one in use. Some areas have had success with radar, laser or air-tube sensors.

One emerging trigger mechanism is the video loop. In this system, a computer analyzes a video feed from the intersection. As the computer receives each new video frame, it checks for substantial changes at specific points in the image. The computer is programmed to recognize the particular changes that indicate a car moving through the intersection. If the light is red and the computer recognizes this sort of change, it activates the still cameras. The main advantage of this system is you don't have to dig up the road to install it, and you can adjust the trigger areas at any time. Essentially, it is a virtual inductive-loop trigger.

The trigger mechanism isn't worth much if it isn't connected to a central brain. In the next section, we'll see how a red-light system's computer puts everything together to construct a case against any traffic violators.

How Red-light Cameras Work

According to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, 22 percent of all traffic accidents in the United States are caused by drivers running red lights. Every year, these accidents kill some 800 people and rack up an estimated $7 billion dollars in property damage, medical bills, lost productivity and insurance hikes. And this sort of traffic violation seems to be on the rise. In many areas, red-light violations have increased by 10 percent or more since the 1980s.

To curb this trend, more and more cities are installing red-light cameras. These fully automated devices collect all of the evidence authorities need to prosecute light-runners. If a camera catches you speeding through the intersection, you can expect a ticket (along with a photograph of the violation) to arrive in your mailbox a month or two later. In this article, we'll look at the basic elements in these systems to find out how they catch drivers red-handed.

Red-light systems rely on some sophisticated technology, but conceptually they are very simple. The system includes only three essential elements:

* One or more cameras
* One or more triggers
* A computer

Multiple cameras are mounted high above the intersection to get a full view of any traffic violators.

In a typical system, cameras are positioned at the corners of an intersection, on poles a few yards high. The cameras point inward, so they can photograph cars driving through the intersection. Generally, a red-light system has cameras at all four corners of an intersection, to photograph cars going in different directions and get pictures from different angles. Some systems use film cameras, but most newer systems use digital cameras.

Red-light cameras augment Port Richey's revenue

PORT RICHEY — With budget season approaching, most cities are cutting costs and tightening their belts.

Port Richey's no exception. But the city of 3,200 does have one source of streaming revenue that most cities don't have: a red-light camera system.

Since May 2, when the Police Department began issuing tickets, dozens of citations have been issued. The grand total for the city's general fund? $15,130.

"It's not large, but it's certainly helpful," said Mayor Richard Rober. "It's absolutely a cushion."

While new bulletproof vests for officers or a fire engine are much-needed items that could be purchased using red-light camera revenue, Rober cautioned against spending that money before budget talks start later this month.

He said the number of tickets written each month varies, so cameras aren't a predictable form of revenue.

"With the funds that might come in, we have to be careful with them," Rober said. "They aren't guaranteed."

Sherri Parker, 47, of Port Richey was taking her friend's son to work one morning when she sailed through a light.

Parker had heard about the camera at Ridge Road and the southbound lanes of U.S. 19 but had forgotten it was there.

"It had changed yellow, but the speed I was going, I didn't have time to stop," she said. "I was like, 'Oh, God. I'm going to get a ticket now.' "

She did — for $125.

When Port Richey installed its red-light camera, it became the first city in Pasco and the third statewide, after Gulf Breeze and Apopka.

Since Apopka's two cameras went up in July 2007, the city has issued 845 citations at $125 each. Like Port Richey, $85 of that goes to the city's general fund, and the rest to American Traffic Solutions, based in Scottsdale, Ariz.

So far, $71,825 has been generated from Apopka's cameras, with the majority of tickets written during the first few months of the system's inception.

State law bans the cameras on state roads, so ATS negotiates with property owners near the intersections where cities want the cameras installed. ATS is now talking with property owners about installing cameras at the city's other two intersections — Grand Boulevard and U.S. 19 and Leo Kidd Avenue and Ridge Road.

Supporters of the camera system say it saves lives by cracking down on red-light runners and generating revenue for places like Port Richey. Opponents say the system is a cash cow for cities.

Jim Baxter, president of the National Motorists Association in Waunakee, Wis., has been critical of the cameras because he says people slam on their brakes and cause rear-end collisions before the light turns red.

"If you've got a problem with people entering (the intersection) just as the light is changing, you increase that yellow-light time, and the problem goes away," he said.

Meanwhile, local drivers are learning about the cameras the hard way.

"I didn't know it was there," said Ronald Howart, 64, of New Port Richey, who was headed home from Wal-Mart when he ran the red light and also got a $125 ticket.

"I guess Big Brother is watching."

Camille C. Spencer
Traffic cameras with multiple views provide the Port Richey Police Department with evidence of red-light runners in the southbound lanes of U.S. 19 at Ridge Road.

Traffic laws set for legislative tuneup

By Mike Brassfield and Steve Bousquet, Times Staff Writer

TALLAHASSEE — State lawmakers are once again pushing to make Florida's traffic laws stricter, including forbidding drivers from talking on cell phones, letting police pull over motorists who aren't buckled up, and legalizing cameras that catch red light runners.

But imposing new driving restrictions is a tall order in the Legislature, which follows a live-and-let-live philosophy when it comes to the rules of the road.

Red light cameras

Will lawmakers clear the way for more red light cameras in Florida? Two Bradenton Republicans have filed bills to do that.

Cities in two dozen states use cameras to ticket drivers who run red lights. But Florida bans the devices from its rights-of-way on state roads, which include many major thoroughfares. A few places, including Hillsborough County, are sticking the cameras on private property near intersections, but other cities are waiting for a change in the law.

Last week, Baker's committee took the Senate bill and reduced the fines that cities had hoped to collect — from $125 to $60 for the first three violations. That has some cities questioning whether they could afford the cameras.

Gov. Charlie Crist wants rules for the cameras to be consistent: "I think that some uniformity might be a little bit easier on citizens throughout the state. I mean, they travel around the state a lot."

In Tallahassee, sparring over driving laws is an annual tug of war pitting public safety against government intrusion. Some lawmakers also want to make it illegal to drive slowly in the passing lane; prohibit kids from riding in pickup beds; and limit the number of passengers in teens' cars.

Most of those bills are likely to die, but they'll be back next year.

Brooksville OKs red-light traffic cameras

BROOKSVILLE -- Red-light traffic cameras received the green light from Brooksville officials Monday.

The Brooksville City Council voted 5-0 to approve a measure that would allow for red-light cameras to be installed at some of the city's busiest intersections. Brooksville will follow the lead of several other municipalities in the area, including Port Richey, which installed its first camera on March 19.

Motorists who run red lights would be photographed by the camera twice, as the vehicle approaches the light and then crossing the intersection. The cameras would also shoot a video, which would be available for the violator to view online.

A police officer will view the video and ultimately determine if the driver broke the law. If so, the driver would be sent a ticket, which would be a civil, not criminal, citation.

City officials will soon enter negotiations with American Traffic Solutions, a Scottsdale, Ariz., company, to determine which intersections could use the cameras; police Chief George Turner has already recommended five intersections to the city and company.

Greg Parks, regional vice president of ATS, said Monday it would be at least 90 days before the first camera was installed in the city.

Joel Anderson, Times staff writer