Chicago → Good Series on Red Light Cameras

We have had several threads about red light cameras here, and now the Tribune over the last three days has confirmed what we all suspected:

The studies showing positive results were flawed since the standard for State reporting had changed over the time period.
Cameras were installed at intersections where there had been few accidents.
T-bone accidents decreased slightly, but red end collisions increased.
Chicago uses 3 second yellow lights which are too short (even after increasing from 2.9 seconds)

Chicago red light cameras provide few safety benefits
»www.chicagotribune.com/n ··· l#page=1

City Hall cites flawed statistics on red light cameras
»www.chicagotribune.com/n ··· ory.html

Many red light cameras put in low-crash areas, Tribune study finds
»www.chicagotribune.com/n ··· e=outfit

Experts: Chicago's short yellow light times, red light cameras a risky mix
»www.chicagotribune.com/n ··· l#page=1

Thanks for posting. I saw a tribune stand at Ohare yesterday but it was sold out and forgot to check online. Having now moved into the city, those damn things will be the end of me - never gotten one but it makes you paranoid as shit.
Edit: nevermind, you need to be subscribed to view the articles.

I've always known there about $ only thank goodness they are gone here now! »www.usatoday.com/story/n ··· 8523777/

I was cited by a red light camera about two months ago. It was my fourth in five years, but, the first one I contested. I prevailed, but, barely.

I told the hearing officer that this particular device was clearly a money grab, because of the camera's aim. It was centered on the right turn lane - the slowest speed anyone trying to beat out the yellow light can safely transition, which I was. If people go straight or turn left from a left turn lane while trying to beat the light, their velocity will be faster than anyone trying to take a right (tighter) turn. I wonder if they changed that camera angle now.

So, now I make sure these people who are in charge of determining if someone violated the red light laws work a little more. I approach EVERY corner with those cameras fast enough to trigger the device... but, not so fast that I cannot come to a complete stop before the line.

With tribune articles, just Google the title and follow the link from the Google results page. They'll always let you in when linked from search, just not from bookmarks, their own site, or other sites.

I hate those cameras, but I drive 25,000 miles a year and have never received a ticket from one.

Naperville seemed to be one of the few towns that did their red light camera implementation according to any sort of reasonable standard: installed the cameras at intersections with the highest rates of accidents, left their yellow light timing alone (about 4 seconds, I think), and were upfront with the public about the criteria they used. Compliance increased, and once the revenue generated from the tickets was no longer enough to cover the cost of the vendor contract, they turned them off.

Maybe it wasn't here but I thought I heard about some courts using/asking cops about the right on red tickets. Basically the judge would show the cop the video and ask if he would have pulled you over for that. Cop says no, you win, cop says yes, you lose.

Maybe it was just a rumor but I thought I heard or read that somewhere.

I believe it. I wish it was a requirement at these hearings. After all, the Hearing Officer was not a police officer, nor was she a judge. You have no idea how much I wanted to tell the hearing officer that only judges should be the ones who make judgments.

I even mentioned at my hearing that there was no way a "police officer" (I didn't say "cop") would have pulled me over for it. I also explained that no law is absolute. I went a little further, too - I told the court that I measured the distance between my front and rear hubs. Based on the video, those measurements, and some mathematics, my velocity was approximately 2.2 mph.

I also told the hearing officer that these cameras should include sound. Two cars on the crossroad were beeping at each other, causing a BIG distraction. The first thing I did after sounding their horns was look in my rear-view mirror to see if I was about to be rear-ended. Instead, it was a car about to turn left in front of another car during their yellow light.

»www.dailyherald.com/arti ··· 1029938/

Partially...They turned them off because the ones at 59/N. Aurora and 59/Diehl were removed due to impending construction and they couldn't be replaced without a new 3 year traffic study. Which left only the one at Ogden and Aurora- and that one wasn't enough to cover the cost.

I can't find anything on Google, but I swear I remember this....Interestingly, there was a camera in Naperville long ago- ten, fifteen years on Ogden as a test. It got removed because it didn't reduce the number of crashes. I could have sworn it was near the closed Dominicks

edit:added the article link(which is what I should have done before posting)

So, here's another very interesting perspective on this:

»chi.streetsblog.org/2014 ··· rnalism/