Rethink purpose of speed cameras

We are lucky enough to spend some time in the winter on South Padre Island, Texas. They have cameras on incoming and outgoing traffic, and they use them in a way that makes more sense than questionable speed trap revenue from folks passing through or locals trying to get to work on time. It's my understanding on South Padre Island that all license plate numbers are run through a national databank that sorts out wanted, known bad guys and informs local police when they're in town. And it seems to work. Several arrests have been made.

If Cedar Rapids cameras are not for the revenue and just to slow things down, do what we've done all over town. Everyone likes the bike lanes, diagonal parking, mid-street curbs, al fresco avenue dining - all would be great on the Interstate 380 curve, or at least as good as they are everywhere else.

Tony Staab

Cedar Rapids