Red Light Camera Ticket
Why do Cities Install Red Light Camera Ticket Systems ?
Cities, like states, and our seemingly out-of-control Federal Government are spending more money than they should, thus when vendors show city councils how much revenue the cities can make by installing red light camera ticket systems to fleece the cities’ drivers, there is little resistance. These private companies will install, maintain, and process each ticket and send to the city “their cut” of the huge violation amount.
How are the cities “sold” on the the idea of Red Light Camera Ticket Systems ?
Cities are sold using data supplied by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, which attempts to convincingly document that drivers who run red lights cause hundreds of deaths and tens of thousands of traffic collision injuries every year. According to statistics, in 2010, some 673 people were killed and an estimated 122,000 more were injured in traffic collisions that involved one driver running through a red light. Of those 673 deaths, about half are pedestrians, bicyclists and the occupants in the “innocent” vehicles that were hit by the cars that ran the red light. The private vendors show the cities charts and graphs of the revenue that these red light camera ticket systems will generate, without the need to pay police officers time and overhead. The cities the then use the Insurance Institute’s data to sell the idea to the citizens they supposedly represent. “Your city is installing red light Camera Ticket systems for Public Safety Concerns.” The expected revenue bonanzas are usually never mentioned to the public – only behind closed doors.
What are the Basics of a Red Light Camera Ticket System ?
Red light camera ticket systems rely on some sophisticated technology, but conceptually they are very straight forward. A Red light camera ticket system system includes three essential elements:
- One or more sensors (triggers)
- One or more cameras with strobe (flash)
- A computer management system
In most intersection red light camera ticket systems, the cameras themselves are permanently positioned at the corners of an intersection and or in the median strips for a separate left-turn violation sub-system. The corner cameras are generally mounted on galvanized steel poles 12 – 20 feet high to prevent vandalism while still allowing for clear camera shots of the both the front and read of a vehicle so as to clearly-capture the vehicle’s license plates and the face of the driver as the vehicle is in the middle of the intersection in violation of a red light. While these cameras began as film canister systems, virtually all new red light camera ticket systems take advantage of digital camera technology which can supply short video clips, images or both.
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If you feel you have been charged with an unfair traffic infraction, or cannot afford the point on your record, contact the Law Office of Scott R. Ball today using this form right here.
Or Call: 1-714-547-7500