Smiling At Red Light Cameras

I smile at red light cameras. Because I watch the lights ahead of me and slow down to a stop when they begin to change. I won't be paying any $100 tickets. (See today's Ramblin' column in The Gazette.)

But, plenty of other folks have issues with the red-light cameras that will soon be operational in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. These are probably the same people, sometimes as many as two or three, who follow me through a yellow light.

These folks have made their objections known in comments at GazetteOnline and in letters to the editor. They believe this is too much government watchdogging (A la George Orwell's book, "1984.") or that the city just wants to gather the revenue, projected to be up to $750,000 a year.

There's even some talk that yellow lights will be shortened so more people can be caught going through a red light. Do honest citizens really think conscientious police departments and city councils would do this to increase revenue, accidents be damned? I don't think so.

If you don't want a ticket, the solution is simple. Obey the law. Stop. The lights give you plenty of warning and they aren't going to change just because a red-light camera has been installed at some intersection.

Wonder how a red light camera works? If you click here, "How Stuff Works" explains the process the cameras use to catch cars driving through intersections after the light has changed. You can also view a video clip of the Discovery Channel's Mythbusters exploding the myth that quickly changing lanes can help you avoid a ticket.

If you have more questions, The National Institute for Highway Safety has a great 17-question/answer look at red-light running based on a study in Fairfax, Va., if you click here.

Want to know where red-light cameras are located? Go to http://www.photoenforced.com/ to find out. Cedar Rapids' red light cameras are already listed.

Obviously, the controversy won't go away. And it shouldn't. People should always question government motives. And The Chicago Tribune has done a great job with This story in explaining how the Illinois Department of Transportation and the city of Chicago have interpreted statistics in their own way. The city says the cameras have reduced crashes; the state says not so fast, that accidents have actually gone up at some intersections.

Cedar Rapids Police Chief Greg Graham cites studies showing the cameras here will reduce crashes by 20 percent citywide and by 40 percent at monitored intersections. He said CR officers repond to about 5,200 crashes a year, which averages to 100 a week. Reduce that by 20 and you free up a lot of offficers' time to conduct other, more important, business. Or, maybe we don't need as many officers on the force.

The thing is, once the cameras are turned on, motorists will have 30 days before any tickets are issued. That's plenty of time to get used to it.

Then, if everybody approaches a controlled intersection as if it has a red-light camera, we'll all be safer.