Texas Camera ban is a lesson for CR leaders

It is noteworthy that the decision of the Cedar Rapids City Council to reinstate traffic cameras came in the same week that the Texas Legislature passed a law banning their use throughout the entire state.

This is a significant development, as Texas is a state where traffic cameras have been in use longer than in Iowa and in many other states. Strong evidence validating termination of the cameras is supported by a recent comprehensive study of traffic camera use in Texas which demonstrated that traffic cameras cause increased numbers of crashes, not a reduction.

Texans recognize a rip-off when they see one. In the supposed name of traffic safety, citizens deprived of due process rights are shaken down for money that goes to out of state and foreign-owned camera companies, out-of-state debt collection companies and government officials with ties to camera companies.

Cedar Rapids elected officials should follow the lead of their Texas peers. To date, they are traveling in the wrong policy direction.

Gary A. Hughes

Marion