|
• The average red light camera location in the U.S. results in reduced
societal costs of $39,000 - $50,000 a year, as reported in a recent cost-
benefit analysis funded by the Federal Highway Administration.
FAQ – Frequently Asked Questions
Q1
I was stuck in the middle of
the intersection blocked by traffic and could not
proceed than the cameras flashed, am I in violation? ?
The cameras will only flash on the red signal phase. At each camera approach there is a red line painted on the ground, if the front of the vehicle is behind the red line and the signal turns red and then the vehicle enters the intersection it is a violation. If the front of the vehicle is already passed the red line when the signal turns red or the vehicle is stuck in the middle of the intersection there is no violation you are lawfully within the intersection and the camera probably got someone else. This happens often at 83rd Ave & Union Hills during heavy traffic periods.
Q2 What is a red light camera enforcement program?
This is a 24/7 Traffic Safety Program in which the city utilizes state of the
art camera systems and violation detection devices installed at specific
intersections for the purpose of decreasing the number of red light runners
and reducing traffic collisions.
Q3 What are red light cameras and how do they work?
Red light cameras can help communities enforce traffic laws by
automatically photographing vehicles whose drivers run red lights. A red
light camera system is connected to the traffic signal and to sensors that
monitor traffic flow at the crosswalk or stop line. The system continuously
monitors the traffic signal 24/7, and the camera itself is triggered by any
vehicle entering the intersection above a pre-established minimum speed
and following a specified time after the signal has turned red. A second
photograph typically shows the red light violator in the intersection.
Cameras record the date, time of day, time elapsed since the beginning of
the red signal, and vehicle speed. Tickets are sent by mail to owners of
the violating vehicles, following review by trained police officers of the
photographic evidence.
Q4 What is red light running?
A violation occurs when a motorist enters an intersection some time after
the signal light has turned red. Motorists inadvertently in an intersection
when the signal changes to red (e.g., waiting to turn left) are not red light
runners.
Q5 Is red light running really a problem?
Red light running is one of the major causes of crashes, deaths and
injuries at signalized intersections. A nationwide study of fatal crashes at
traffic signals in 1999 and 2000 conducted by the National Highway Traffic
Safety Administration estimated that 20 percent of the drivers involved
failed to obey the signals.
Q6 Isn’t conventional police enforcement sufficient?
Traditional traffic law enforcement are resource intensive and high risk as
they rely exclusively on the presence of an office to observe violations and
identify and cite offenders, which is limiting as police officers cannot be
everywhere. Even when police officers observe a violation, it is not always
possible to safely stop the violator because to make stop, the officer may
have to speed or run a red light. This can endanger motorists and
pedestrians as well as police officers, and traffic stops in high-traffic areas
can exacerbate congestion. Communities lack the resources necessary to
allow police to patrol intersections as often as would be needed to ticket
all motorists who run red lights and to thereby make a significant impact
on red light running. Red light cameras are designed to identify traffic law
violators without depending on the presence of police officers and can
monitor intersections 24/7, allowing police to focus on other enforcement
needs.
Q7 Does my community really need red-light cameras?
I’ve
heard that all that is really needed is to extend yellow light
timing?
The use of adequate yellow signal timing reduces red light running and
injury-related crashes, but longer yellow timing used in conjunction with
red light cameras provides a more significant decrease in incidents of red
light running. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety recently
conducted a field study to evaluate the effects on red light running by first
lengthening yellow signal timing, followed by the introduction of red light
cameras. Six approaches to two different intersections were tested
sequentially. Findings were compared against three intersections in a
neighboring city where red light cameras were not used and yellow light
timing remained constant. Results showed that yellow timing changes
reduced red light violations by an average 36 percent. The addition of red
light camera enforcement further reduced red light violations by 96 percent
beyond levels achieved by the longer yellow timing. At the intersection
with the greatest incidence of red light running—251 per 10,000
vehicles—yellow light extensions reduced red light running to 198
incidents per 10,000 vehicles. Once red light cameras were installed at
that intersection, incidents of red light running dropped to an astounding
two per 10,000 vehicles.
Source: Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, Status Report, Vol. 42, No. 1
January 27, 2007; Retting, Richard A., Ferguson, Susan A., Farmer, Charles M.,
Reducing Red Light Running Through Longer yellow Signal timing and Red Light
Camera Enforcement: Results of a Field Investigation, Insurance Institute for
Highway Safety, January 2007.
Q8 What safety benefits do red light cameras provide?
Cameras have been shown to substantially reduce red light violations.
Institute Evaluations by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety in
Fairfax, Virginia, and Oxnard, California, showed that camera enforcement
reduced red light running violations by about 40 percent. In addition to
reducing red light running at camera-equipped sites, violation reductions in
both communities carried over to signalized intersections not equipped
with red light cameras, indicating community-wide changes in driver
behavior.
In addition to reducing red light violations, cameras have been shown to
reduce intersection crashes. In Oxnard, California, significant citywide
crash reductions followed the introduction of red light cameras, and injury
crashes at intersections with traffic signals were reduced by 29 percent.
Front-into-side collisions — the type of crash most closely associated with
red light running — also were reduced by 32 percent, and front-into-side
crashes involving injuries were reduced by 68 percent. An Institute review
of international red light camera studies concluded that cameras reduce
red light violations by 40 to 50 percent and reduce injury crashes by 25 to
30 percent.
Q9 Isn’t it more dangerous for cars to slam on their brakes if
they fear running a red light rather than to simply keep
driving?
REDFLEX technology is set up to photograph only those vehicles entering
the intersection after the light has turned red. While drivers who fear a
ticket for red light running can cause a rear end collision by applying their
brakes too rapidly, these types of collisions are far less dangerous than
the typical right-angle collision caused by red light running, indicating a
positive aggregate benefit.
In Ventura, California, which installed cameras at 17 different locations in
2001, has seen red light running crashes drop 80 percent at the
intersections with red light cameras, and a 29 percent reduction in red light
running crashes across the city.
A 2005 study conducted by researchers at the Institute for Transportation
Research and Education, in cooperation with North Carolina State
University, reviewed traffic data from over a dozen intersections in Raleigh
considered to be the most dangerous in the city, half of which had red light
cameras. Researchers compared “before” and “after” red light related
collisions between the two groups and found that right-angle collisions
were reduced by 42 percent at red-light camera intersections, with a 25
percent reduction in rear-end crashes. Total red-light related crashes
dropped by 22 percent.
As confirmed by two recent studies funded by the FHTSA, red light photo
enforcement benefit communities by reducing dangerous right angle
crashes at the intersections where the cameras are deployed, as well as
other intersections located near red light camera-enforced intersections.
Q10 I’ve heard that red light cameras don’t actually improve
road safety. Is that true?
Red light cameras have been shown to deter red light running and are an
effective supplement to traditional means of law enforcement. Red light
cameras are in operation in over 200 U.S. communities, up from only two
communities ten years ago, and have been used internationally since the
1970s. A 2005 review of red light camera studies around the world
concluded that cameras reduce red light violations by 40 to 50 percent
and reduced injury-related crashes by 25 – 30 percent, according to The
National Campaign to Stop Red Light Running.
An in-depth analysis report produced January 30, 2007, documents the
success in Knoxville, Tennessee, which began a REDFLEX red photo
enforcement program in 2006:
- Total crashes have decreased 17 percent
- Angle crashes have dropped by 45 percent
- Rear end crashes are down by one percent
Minneapolis, Minnesota reported results from a six-month trial program in
2006:
- Total crashes have decreased 16 percent
- Angle crashes have dropped by 20 percent
- Total citywide crashes are down by five percent, which reflects a
typical modification in total citywide driver behavior with overall
safety benefits experienced beyond photo enforced intersections
Q11 Do red light cameras violate motorists’ right to privacy?
No. Driving is a regulated activity on public roads. By obtaining a license,
a motorist agrees to abide by certain rules, such as to obey traffic signals.
Neither the law nor common sense suggests drivers should not be
observed on the road nor have their violations documented. Red light
camera systems can be designed to photograph only a vehicle's rear
license plate, not vehicle occupants, depending on local law. Only vehicles
driven by motorists who violate the law are photographed.
Q12 What intersections are being considered for cameras?
There are several intersections currently being considered to be monitored
by these systems and all intersection approaches will be properly signed
in accordance with ARS 28-654 which will alert motorists of the photo
enforcement zone before they enter it.
Cameras are operational at:
83rd Ave & Union Hills Road
91st Ave & Bell Road
83rd Ave & Thunderbird Road
75th Ave & Thunderbird
Q13 What is the fine?
The fine for running a red light in Peoria is $214.00
| For more information you may contact the Peoria Photo Enforcement Program Customer Service Call Center Toll-free at 1-877-84SAFE-T (1-877-847-2338) from 7:00am to 5:00pm (MST). |
Back to Red Light Enforcement Home
Page »
|
