#Traffic

A red light camera company faces being fined for running an illegal operation in the state of South Dakota. Last Tuesday, a circuit court judge ruled that Redflex Traffic Systems and the city of Sioux Falls violated state law and the US Constitution when they set up automated ticketing machines without approval from the state legislature. The question of whether Redflex is financially liable, and to what degree, will now be determined by a jury.

If there’s one reason we dedicate as many pixels as we do to the rise of speed cameras in the US, it’s the UK. We’ve seen how speed cameras have taken over Old Blighty, jamming the newswires with reports of mis-ticketing, unwarranted surveillance and popular backlashes against the dread cameras. But apparently the UK has decided that, with more speed cameras than any other nation on earth, it’s time to stop building more. Totallymotor reports that road safety minister Mike Penning has announced that his new conservative government will stop financing the construction of speed cameras by local authorities, bringing an end to a decade’s worth of camera build-up. Penning tells local authorities that they are free to purchase cameras with their own money, but that the government will encourage the use of alternative safety measures.

South Carolina Governor Mark Sanford (R) last week signed a law banning the use of red light cameras and speed cameras in the state. The measure swept unanimously through the House, 106 to 0, on June 3 and in the Senate 38 to 0 on June 2. So far, fifteen states have taken legislative or judicial action to prohibit the use of automated ticketing machines. In addition, the voters in ten cities have thrown out photo enforcement by referendum ( view complete list). South Carolina’s law takes effect immediately.

Baytown, Texas is easing up on issuing red light camera tickets in the hopes of diverting momentum away from a planned effort to place a photo enforcement ban on the ballot. Resident Byron Schirmbeck and a team of volunteers expect soon to turn in a second petition forcing a referendum. Statistics show that, in response, city officials and American Traffic Solutions have deliberately issued fewer citations. The program rejected 29 percent of violations in July 2008, but documents show the rate of rejections climbed to 54 percent in December.

A new study of the country’s largest red light camera program found no significant benefit to the use of photo enforcement. Rajiv Shah, an adjunct professor at the University of Illinois at Chicago released the final version of his exploratory analysis into Chicago’s photo ticketing program, which boasts 188 cameras.

A bipartisan effort to overturn a controversial Ohio Supreme Court ruling garnered the support of twelve of the state Senate’s thirty-three members in just four days. Senators Tim Grendell (R-Chesterland) and Capri S. Cafaro (D-Hubbard) jointly introduced legislation on Thursday that would forbid police from issuing speeding tickets based solely on the officer’s best speed guess.

Suburban municipalities are infuriated by the Cook County, Illinois Board of Commissioners’ plan to install unwanted red light cameras in their towns. On June 2, the board voted 10 to 3 to approve contracts with two vendors to begin installing cameras at thirty intersections on county roads throughout suburban Cook County. More and more municipalities are now pushing back. The Schaumburg Village Board voted unanimously Tuesday to pass an ordinance prohibiting the county from erecting red light cameras within their city limits without the town’s consent.

Residents of Mukilteo, Washington and Anaheim, California will vote this November on whether to ban red light cameras and speed cameras. Washington initiative guru Tim Eyman joined representatives from BanCams.com and the Campaign for Liberty yesterday in announcing that the required number of signatures had been collected to force an anti-camera initiative onto the next ballot. A total of 1909 signed in a matter of just two weeks.

Red light cameras in San Mateo County, California received a one-two punch as an appellate court and a grand jury called into question the way red light cameras operate in the county. On Monday, the San Mateo County Civil Grand Jury released a report suggesting that the eight cities within the county that use photo enforcement are preoccupied with revenue. The report found that although cities claimed their sole interest was safety, officials failed to furnish reliable evidence to back up the assertion.

On the heels of a Ben Gurion University study showing that drivers under the influence of marijuana are less dangerous than drunk drivers, comes yet another study indicating that driving stoned might not be quite as bad as some think. Published in the Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, the Hartford Hospital/University of Iowa study titled “Sex differences in the effects of marijuana on simulated driving performance,” concludes that:

Under the influence of marijuana, participants decreased their speed and failed to show expected practice effects during a distracted drive. No differences were found during the baseline driving segment or collision avoidance scenarios. No differences attributable to sex were observed. This study enhances the current literature by identifying distracted driving and the integration of prior experience as particularly problematic under the influence of marijuana.

Irie!

Appellate courts in California are becoming increasingly upset at the conduct of cities and photo enforcement vendors. On May 21, a three-judge panel of the California Superior Court, Appellate Division, in Orange County tossed out a red light camera citation in the city of Santa Ana in a way that calls into question the legitimacy of the way red light camera trials are conducted statewide. Previously, a string of brief, unpublished decisions struck at illegal contracts, insufficient notice and other deficiencies. This time, however, the appellate division produced a ten-page ruling and certified it for publication, setting a precedent that applies to the county’s three million residents.

Oklahoma is preparing an unprecedented statewide deployment of automated ticketing machines designed to generate $95 million in revenue. Instead of using red light cameras and speed cameras, the Oklahoma Department of Public Safety (DPS) is preparing to sign a contract with a for-profit company that will track all passing motorists with a network of at least twenty automated license plate recognition (ALPR, also known as ANPR) cameras. The devices would also “generate significant additional revenues” by issuing $250 citations for expired insurance using the Oklahoma Compulsory Insurance Verification System (OCIVS) database that went live in July 2009.

Being accused by a speed camera now provides sufficient evidence for police in Western Australia to confiscate a car. On Friday, a 49-year-old man lost his Porsche 944 Turbo because a combination red light camera and speed camera accused him of driving 130km/h in a 60 zone (80 MPH in a 37 zone) at the intersection of Riverside Drive and Barrack Street in Perth. The cameras began ticketing drivers at that location on May 7.

A handful of bills advanced in the California legislature last week that, if enacted, would restrict the ability of local jurisdictions to use red light cameras to generate revenue. Some proposals make minor tweaks, while others, like Senate Bill 949, strike down ordinances specifically designed to boost municipal profit margins. The state Senate approved this bill 28 to 0 last Friday sending a warning to jurisdictions like Alameda County, Long Beach, Oakland, Riverbank and Roseville which have set up their own traffic ticketing and red light camera ordinances that bypass the requirements of state law.

A federal jury ruled Thursday against a traffic camera company that had sought to impose a $20 million fine on its nearest rival. The panel of eight spent an hour-and-a-half to arrive at the verdict denying American Traffic Solutions (ATS) payment for contract revenue lost in twelve cities after the Australian firm Redflex Traffic Systems snuck uncertified equipment into the country in violation of Federal Communications Commission regulations.