Glenn Reynolds of Instapundit fame has a great article in the March 2006 issue of Popular Mechanics about these notoriously irritating devices.
Interesting points:
1. They work too well…
Others worry about safety. Red-light cameras are supposed to make us safer by discouraging people from running red lights. The trouble is that they work too well. Numerous studies have found that when these cameras are put in place, rear-end collisions increase dramatically. Drivers who once might have stretched the light a bit now slam on their brakes for fear of getting a ticket, with predictable results. A study of red-light cameras in Washington, D.C., by The Washington Post found that despite producing more than 500,000 tickets (and generating over $32 million in revenues), red-light cameras didn’t reduce injuries or collisions. In fact, the number of accidents increased at the camera-equipped intersections.
Likewise, red-light cameras in Portland, Ore., produced a 140 percent increase in rear-end collisions at monitored intersections….
2. Revenue enhancement….
Say it ain’t so, reducing yellow light times, what government would do
that??
This problem can be aggravated by jurisdictions that shorten the duration of yellow lights, apparently to generate more ticket revenue. Last year, CBS News reported on an especially egregious case in Maryland: A traffic-camera intersection had a 2.7-second yellow light, while nearby intersections had 4-second times. Shorter yellow lights are more dangerous–but shorter yellow lights plus traffic cameras generate revenue.
3. Walks like a tax, smells like a tax…
These kinds of revelations led UCLA law professor Stephen Bainbridge to write on his blog: “In my book, these instruments of the devil are just a tax on drivers.”
4. Are red light camera’s the “will of the people” ?
As an editorial on the automotive blog thetruthaboutcars.com notes, “Every time photo radar is put to a direct popular vote, it loses.”
I believe it’s time to go check the yellow light timing in Boulder. I’ll call the City and determine what intersections need to be tested.
