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Google Maps Adding Photo Radar Warnings For Drivers In Canada (huffingtonpost.ca)
Google Maps is warning drivers in Canada as they approach some photo radar camera locations. "The feature, which is currently being rolled out by Google, allows users to see speed limits, speed cameras and mobile speed cameras on the map before they leave," reports HuffPost Canada. "It also gives a verbal warning -- an automated voice saying 'speed camera ahead' -- when drivers are near a fixed speed camera." From the report: Police in Calgary say the feature is useful to them. "The biggest thing we love ... is we place those (cameras) by collision statistics," said Sgt. Joerg Gottschling of the Calgary Police Service traffic section. "If we do a new site, if we are going to install a new camera, the next site is always selected by the next highest crash site. "Our intersection locations are all determined where we are trying to eliminate collisions."
Gottschling said they've had up to a 50 per cent reduction in collisions in some areas where those cameras are stationed. With Google Maps, he noted, all drivers approaching the fixed camera intersection get the warning. "That camera is only facing one way," said Gottschling. "Let's say it's only facing northbound, but you can approach southbound or eastbound ... you are still going to get Google telling you caution. "So you're going to go slowly and cautiously through there which, lo and behold, is actually what we want." Google said in an email that there will also be an ability for android users to report mobile speed cameras and stationary cameras.
Gottschling said they've had up to a 50 per cent reduction in collisions in some areas where those cameras are stationed. With Google Maps, he noted, all drivers approaching the fixed camera intersection get the warning. "That camera is only facing one way," said Gottschling. "Let's say it's only facing northbound, but you can approach southbound or eastbound ... you are still going to get Google telling you caution. "So you're going to go slowly and cautiously through there which, lo and behold, is actually what we want." Google said in an email that there will also be an ability for android users to report mobile speed cameras and stationary cameras.
What's the big deal? Waze already gives those warnings in the USA; is it the "in Canada" part that''s special?
Yeah, but they're also full of shit.
"So you're going to go slowly and cautiously through there which, lo and behold, is actually what we want."
Nope, what I'm going to be doing is looking at my speedometer instead of the road because that's what they've trained me to do. They've also trained some idiots to break on green lights. So while I'm distracted by my speedo, there's a good chance someone ahead of me is breaking for no reason.
Which is why the red light /speed/ cameras see an almost universal increase in minor rear-end collisions, and a reduction in catastrophic t-bone collisions.
They love pretending they can shape everyone's behaviour in the same fashion, but the tighter they grip the wider they make gap between the aggressive and the nervous drivers.
It's all very effective, so far this year that's lead to a 55% increase in the death toll on the roads from their "towards zero" campaign.
http://www.tac.vic.gov.au/road...
Literally not a single one of the stories provided on that page provides any evidence that cities shortened the lights after installing the cameras. On the contrary, most of them are along the lines of this excerpt:
"Dallas likewise installed the cameras at locations with existing short yellow times. A total of twenty-one camera intersections in Dallas had yellow times below TxDOTâ(TM)s bare minimum recommended amount."
It seems much more likely that - as the police officer in this story suggested - cameras are installed in response to danger. If the people responsible for setting up the lights are incompetent (as several of the stories on your linked page suggest) then some intersections will have shorter lights. Those intersections will be much more likely to have a disproportionate number of accidents. Therefore they will be more likely to receive cameras.
Of course it's stupid to just slap a camera on an intersection without first looking at why so many accidents occur at that location ... but stupidity is common, so why are you assuming malice?