Georgia: Red Light Cameras Struggle in Face of Longer Yellow

the Newspaper.com ^ | 03/11/2009 | n/a

[mgc1122]

These cameras were NEVER about safety ... revenue generation was and is the goal.

[Sir Gawain]

Lilburn voted to accept the suspension to give Lasercraft time to come up with a plan to increase the number of citations.

Scum.

[brownsfan]

“These cameras were NEVER about safety ... revenue generation was and is the goal.”

That’s a fact! And it makes my blood boil.

[Ken H]

The mandated increase in signal time created dramatic and instant results. In 2008, Lasercraft issued an average of 1,559 citations each month. In January, that number dropped 80 percent to just 313. Norcross also saw an 80 percent drop in violations.

So sad.

[TSgt]

This is great news!

We can save lives by simply increasing the yellow by 1 second!

Those cameras proved their worth! Now take them down.

[gridlock]

I guess the question is if the yellow signal at the monitored intersections was shortened when the cameras were installed in the first place. The reason to do that would be to increase revenues by setting up a trap

If adding an extra second reduces violations, reduces accidents, and reduces tickets, these are all good things. The fact that this is viewed as a problem shows how the purpose of traffic citations has become completely perverted.

[Thebaddog]

Those darn cameras are spouting up like mushrooms here in the Peoples Republic of Chicago. And I think that they are playing with the sequencing of the lights at some intersections to trap me and my fellow human ATM’s

[beaversmom]

Throw another second on and watch the lives saved really increase!

[tacticalogic]

These cameras were NEVER about safety ... revenue generation was and is the goal.

Indeed.

"Lilburn voted to accept the suspension to give Lasercraft time to come up with a plan to increase the number of citations."

[publana]

bump for later

[GOYAKLA]

Isn’t this just a re-hash of the “Great Ludowici Plan” of 1950-65? Welcome back to the Ghost of Governor Maddox!!!

[xp38]

I am not sure how prevalent they are elsewhere but here in the Toronto area they have started installing countdown timers in the traffic lights and to me they are a great idea. As a driver and a pedestrian you know exactly how much time you have before the light turns red and can judge and act accordingly. It is one of the better improvements that have come along.

[Cold Heart]

They could set the cameras to issue citations during that last second of yellow as well as the red.

Heck, set them to randomly flash cars going through the intersection. Just dial in how much money they want.

[Rapscallion]

“These cameras were NEVER about safety ... revenue generation was and is the goal.” That’s a fact! And it makes my blood boil.

If you want to fix them drive 10 miles below the posted speed and delay starting when the light turns green. They will cave if people do it.

[The Toll]

Reading this correctly makes it clear that 80% of the citations went to vehicles that just barely failed to make it through the intersection before the light changed red.

80% and they knew it too!

SCUM!

[Sgt_Schultze]

Revenue enhancement is the backbone of every government “enforcement” program. Speed traps are no different. If government wanted to save lives, they would lower speed limits to 30 mph. If governments wanted to curtail red light running or speeding, fines would be $1,000 and loss of license upon first offense. But they depend more on the revenue of their nuisance fines.

[RobRoy]

>>Lilburn voted to accept the suspension to give Lasercraft time to come up with a plan to increase the number of citations.<<

Gee, they don’t even try to hide it any more.

The traffic cops and their tools are LITERALLY the modern equivalent of highwaymen and bridge trolls. How do they honestly expect us to take them seriously?

Legitimate reasons for traffic laws:
1. Safety
2. Promote efficient traffic flow.

Illegitimate reasons for traffic laws:
3. Increase government (and their agents) revenues.
4. Intimidate the general public.

I ignore red left turn lights as well as normal traffic lights when it is clearly safe to proceed. I drive over the speed limit when it is clearly safe to do so. These both adhere to numbers 1 and 2. I have violated neither number 1 or number 2. However, I violate numbers 3 and 4 all the time.

Whether I get caught or not is like a game to me - and I am always playing it whenever behind the wheel. When you get caught, it is like playing monopoly and you land on Baltic Ave. If it is a serious DUI, etc., it is more like Park place with a few houses. But I make it around the board years at a time without landing on the other side’s property. And even when I do, I usually end up pulling a “get out of jail free” card.

Side note: Every time in my entire life I have been pulled over by a motorcycle, I have gotten a ticket of some sort. Usually significantly reduced offense, but always a ticket.

[RobRoy]

>>Throw another second on and watch the lives saved really increase!<<

Actually, they could have it both ways. If they had not increased the yellow, but caused the other directions red to change to green after the green had changed to yellow, they could have kept the revenue up AND still gotten lots of citations. A win-win! Except for the poor schmucks getting the unfair tickets.

When at a light that has a camera, if I am the first car to have to stop I always slam on my brakes as hard as I can. I have good headrests and insurance.

[Atlas Sneezed]

If government wanted to save lives, they would lower speed limits to 30 mph.

---

Actually, the traffic engineering stories tell us that if they wanted to save lives, they would set speed limits (generally increasing them) to the 85th percentile speed that the population of free-flowing automobile drivers would naturally drive if there were no speed limit, rounded up to the nearest 5 mph.