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Cities Tampering With Traffic Lights To Generate Revenue
Techdirt is reporting that there has been a rash of reports indicating that red light cameras are being used to generate revenue rather than to promote safety. "Time and time again studies have shown that if cities really wanted to make traffic crossings safer there's a very simple way to do so: increase the length of the yellow light and make sure there's a pause before the cross traffic light turns green (this is done in some places, but not in many others). Tragically, it looks like some cities are doing the opposite! Jeff Nolan points out that six US cities have been caught decreasing the length of the yellow light below the legal limits in an effort to catch more drivers running red lights and [increase] revenue."
If all you have are silver bullets, everything looks like a werewolf.
After jumping through two blogs (neither of which are the actual story), you'll come to Motorists.org -- the National Motorists Association -- and find the story, dated March 26, 2008 (3 weeks ago). Reading the story, you'll see they cite six different local newspaper articles, some dating back more than a year ago:
http://www.motorists.org/blog/red-light-cameras/6-cities-that-were-caught-shortening-yellow-light-times-for-profit/
So while indeed this is interesting, it is not particularly "new" nor "news." Cities have been doing this for over a decade, and they occasionally get caught, but more often than not, they do not. They will continue to push for the cameras since they generate virtually "free" revenue (free in the sense of little manpower and little initial investment cost).
Here in the UK we've had cameras of some sort looking over traffic for years. Initially they were speed cameras; today there are also red light cameras.
The entire system is set up to make money and it's as clear as day. When a speed camera is placed at the bottom of a steep hill or in the middle of a 2-mile straight, clear stretch of road (with a tree hiding it), it's pretty unrealistic to claim they're purely for safety reasons
In all the cities near me, there are yellow diamond signs with a picture of an old brownie camera in black in the middle on all approaches to intersections with cameras.
The biggest solution to decreasing accidents at intersections is actually not to increase the amber light and provide more delay before the cross street's green -- the biggest solution is to decrease the number of light cycles per day. The fewer cycles, the fewer accidents per day, even if the same number of accidents occur per cycle.
The trick is to measure the volume of through traffic on both streets per hour on weekdays and weekends and adjust the light timings accordingly, finding the "sweet spot" between causing congestion due to long waits and causing accidents due to short waits.
The long amber and green light delays are only an aid that can help tweak the system once these other factors are accounted for.
Of course, in many cities, the amber light is referred to by drivers as the "go faster" light -- having a long amber actually promotes speeding through intersections in such cities, and results in more pedestrian injuries and deaths.
Unfortunately it doesn't work like that - lights timed for 35 mph are timed for 17.5 mph and 7.75 mph. But unless you're getting a full light cycle between one light and the next, going 70 mph will get you there long before the light turns green.
Not only that, but since you'd have to stop at each light, you'd be backing up traffic that was going the speed the lights are timed for.
Yes, this is true. But for certain values of time that the yellow light is on the laws of physics dictate that you cannot stop in time. This is THE POINT of the yellow light. It it to allow people who cannot physically stop their cars in time to clear the intersection before the light turns red.
This is a really specious argument. The yellow light could be made 60 seconds long and yet there will still be people who try to make it 59.85 seconds into the yellow and end up running the light because it just changed to red.
If you see the light turn yellow, so can the people behind you and it is totally their fault if they rear-end you.
I understand and agree with you that the learned behavior of most people is to try to gun their engines when the light turns yellow. However, that behavior is still wrong, ultimately, and causes accidents for the reason I stated above.
...the timing of the Yellow and All-Red intervals are pretty straightforward. The Yellow should be 3-6 seconds long, and is based upon the approach speeds (the higher the speed, the longer the Yellow). The purpose of the Yellow is warn traffic of an impending change in Right-of-Way assignment. On a typical urban roadway with speeds of 30 mph, the Yellow should be 3 seconds long.
The All-Red interval should also be 3-6 seconds long, and should be based upon the geometry and size of the intersection, as well as the approach speeds. The purpose of the All-Red interval is to ensure that the intersection is clear of crossing traffic prior to assigning the Right-of-Way to a side street or pedestrian crossing. To determine the appropriate length of an All-Red interval, you need measure the distance from the stop line to the far side of the intersection (typically past the far crosswalk) and determine the approach speed. 30 m.p.h. = 44 ft/sec, so if the distance from the stop line to the far crosswalk is 88 feet, the appropriate All-Red interval would be 2 seconds. To be conservative, you can also add the length of a typical vehicle (~25 ft.) into the equation.
With that knowledge in hand, you may be able to fight a red light-running ticket if you believe the timing provided for you was too short. Those are the general guidelines across the US. Individual states, counties, and cities may have different criteria, though.
The city of Baltimore has been under constant scrutiny for red light camera policies that appear to be unsafe and/or in financial conflict with the public interest. In the report mentioned here, Administrative Judge Keith "One T" Mathews wrote the following summary:
The one thing that red light cameras have always consistently accomplished, however, is revenue generation on a large scale.
They HAD them here in North Carolina, ran for about a year. Then someone brought up the fact that our State Constitution says that all traffic fines levied must go DIRECTLY to the schools, 100%. The camera companies were charging 50% royalty for each ticket given, and the counties were keeping the rest. Now there are a host of lawsuits out trying to force them both to give up 100% of the funds to the schools. The cameras are still here, but haven't been in operation for a couple of years.
It's hard for the camera companies to make any money (and pay for the cameras) if you have to give 100% to someone else.
Tequila: It's not just for breakfast anymore!
That doesn't make any sense to me, and I don't see how it would fly. If you hit someone in the rear, you're following too close!
A friend of my ex-wife once complained about being ticketed when she was in an accident. The light turned yellow, the driver in front of her stopped, and she rear-ended the other driver. Evil-X's friend was livid that the other driver had the gall to stop for a yellow light!
mcgrew's razor: Never attribute to stupidity that which can be explained by greedy self-interest
Houston is another city that is installing red
:)
light cameras just as fast as they can get them up.
Police review the video footage of any
vehicle that triggers the camera. If you're found
to have committed the offense, the ticket is
generated and mailed to you. They also send a link
along to the video where you can watch yourself
blow the light
You normally won't see a ticket if the light
was still yellow on entering the intersection.
Most folks who are seeing the violations are
blatantly blasting through the intersection
after the light has gone red.
So the way the system is set up currently, you
can tell fairly quickly if the light is cycling
faster than it should and if you truly deserved
the citation.
No it isn't.
Yelow means "clear the intersection".
It doens't mean "slam on your brakes" and it doesn't mean "floor it".
A Pirate and a Puritan look the same on a balance sheet.
For anyone that's interested, the video referred to above is titled "A Meditation On The Speed Limit."
Do not read this sig.
Not all states. From Texas's Transportation Code, Chapter 544.007:
(d) An operator of a vehicle facing only a steady red signal shall stop at a clearly marked stop line. In the absence of a stop line, the operator shall stop before entering the crosswalk on the near side of the intersection. A vehicle that is not turning shall remain standing until an indication to proceed is shown. After stopping, standing until the intersection may be entered safely, and yielding right-of-way to pedestrians lawfully in an adjacent crosswalk and other traffic lawfully using the intersection, the operator may:(1) turn right
or
(2) turn left, if the intersecting streets are both one-way streets and a left turn is permissible.
(e) An operator of a vehicle facing a steady yellow signal is warned by that signal that:
(1) movement authorized by a green signal is being terminated; or
(2) a red signal is to be given.
In addition, they have to WARN you that they're using traffic cams, as seen here in sections 544.012(c) and (d): (c) The municipality shall install signs along each roadway that leads to an intersection at which a photographic traffic monitoring system is in active use. The signs must be at least 100 feet from the intersection or located according to standards established in the manual adopted by the Texas Transportation Commission under Section 544.001, be easily readable to any operator approaching the intersection, and clearly indicate the presence of a photographic monitoring system that records violations that may result in the issuance of a notice of violation and the imposition of a monetary penalty.
(d) A municipality that fails to comply with Subsection (c) may not impose or attempt to impose a civil or administrative penalty against a person, including the owner of a motor vehicle or an operator, for a failure to comply with the instructions of a traffic-control signal located at the applicable intersection.
Don't tell me to get a life. I'm a gamer; I have LOTS of lives!
More importantly, already being in the intersection means that you're not breaking the law when the light turns red -- it's only illegal to enter it under a red light.
"[Regarding the 'cloud,'] ownership was what made America different than Russia." -- Woz
Beat it at what? Being right? Sure. Changing it? I've seen precious little in these parts to suggest our lawmakers are even remotely swayed by things like "facts" or "common fucking sense".
Try not to take me more seriously than I take myself.
Actually, the money should go to the companies that make LED lights that don't show up on the visible spectrum that you can put around your license plate so it can't be read by a camera. Technology exists so we don't have to be controlled by idiots. Fight the power!