ATS’ Newsletter Vol. 5, Issue 15

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Red-Light Running Awareness Month is coming to a close in Arizona, but the need to share the message to stop on red never ends. American Traffic Solutions (ATS) encourages drivers to obey all traffic laws and to be especially attentive near intersections. Last year, 696 people were killed and an estimated 129,000 were injured in red-light running collisions across the county. These tragedies can be prevented. To spread the message to stop on red through social media channels visit the ATS Facebook page. Drive safely.

 

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Teen Hit Trying to Board School Bus; Arrest Made
WFMY-TV Channel 2 (North Carolina), March 26, 2015

Authorities have arrested a driver in a hit-and-run incident that injured a teen, who was sent to a nearby medical center. The early morning collision occurred as the teen crossed the street to board his school bus in Caswell County. The bus was stopped with its stop-arm extended and stop lights flashing.

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School Bus Safety Camera Considerations Advance in Austin
KTBC-TV FOX 7 (Texas), March 24, 2015

The Austin School District is moving forward with a plan to put traffic enforcement cameras on school buses. The decision comes as a middle school student recovers from being run down by a car this month after she got off her school bus.  A study presented to the Austin School District last year clearly shows the threat is larger than one child. A 30-camera pilot program with American Traffic Solutions documented more than 1,400 violations between August and December. (KTBC-TV FOX 7 image)

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Transportation Advocates Speak Up for Road Safety
WMAQ-TV NBC 5 (Illinois), March 24, 2015

Transportation advocates in Chicago hope to put the brakes on red-light camera opposition. Saying that victims of traffic crashes are being forgotten in the debate over traffic safety and red-light cameras, the Active Transportation Alliance called on officials to assess photo enforcement and other safety strategies in the city by implementing a “Vision Zero” strategy, which is guided by the idea that no loss of life on streets is acceptable and photo enforcement helps prevent such crashes. (WFLD-TV FOX 32 image)

Van Runs Red Light, Strikes Collier County School Bus
WBBH-TV NBC 2 (Florida), March 24, 2015

No one was seriously injured when a van slammed into a Collier County school bus early Tuesday morning. According to the Florida Highway Patrol, the van ran a red light and hit the bus, which was not carrying any children.

School Bus, Pickup Truck Collide in Intersection in Wisconsin
Battle Creek Enquirer (Michigan), March 24, 2015

According to the Kalamazoo County Sheriff’s Office, a Gull Lake Community School bus collided with a pickup truck early Tuesday. The collision occurred as the pickup drove through a red light. There were no injuries.

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Judge Blocks Ohio’s New Law on Photo Enforcement
Northeast Ohio Media Group/Cleveland.com, March 24, 2015

A Lucas County judge has issued a preliminary injunction blocking new restrictions on Ohio traffic cameras from taking effect. Lucas County Common Pleas Judge Dean Mandros, in an opinion issued Sunday, granted the city of Toledo’s request to delay Senate Bill 342, agreeing that it violates the city’s home-rule authority. See related article in The Review and City of Toledo’s press release.

 

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$17,000 Plus Raised for Boy Hit by Pickup on Way to School Bus
MLive.com (Michigan), March 25, 2015

More than $17,000 in donations and well wishes from across the country have poured in for a 12-year-old boy as he recovers from injuries he suffered when he was struck by a truck while trying to get on the school bus. A statement from the Calhoun County Sheriff’s Office said the school bus had flashing lights and a stop sign activated at the time of the collision. See related coverage from WWTV-TV Channels 9 & 10. (MLive.com photo by Ben Raven)

Car Driver Hurt in Crash with School Bus
WBAY-TV ABC 2 (Wisconsin), March 24, 2015

Waupaca County Sheriff’s Office says the driver of a car that rear-ended a school bus in east-central Wisconsin has been seriously injured. The crash occurred after the bus stopped on Highway 54 to pick up a student Tuesday morning. No students were hurt.

Police Ride School Buses, Ticket 24 Motorists
Kearney Hub (Nebraska), March 24, 2015

Kearney Police issued 24 citations to motorists for allegedly neglecting school bus stop arm signals in the community. During the selective enforcement period between March 9 and March 20, uniform officers sometimes rode on buses then radioed any violations to street officers in the area. Overtime hours for the enforcement were paid from a grant of up to $5,000 from the Office of Highway Safety. Each motorist faces a fine of up to $500.

 

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Enforcement Time Changes at School Zone
Lake Forest Park (Washington), March 24, 2015

The operational period for the school zone traffic safety enforcement camera system in Lake Forest Park has changed. New times are now Monday through Friday 7:30 to 9:30 a.m. and 2:30 to 4 p.m. at all locations. This change comes as a result of a citizen survey last summer.

 

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Takoma Park to Buy Police Vehicles with Speed Camera Funds
Gazette (Maryland), March 25, 2015

The Takoma Park City Council soon will start reviewing the fiscal 2016 budget, but on Monday dealt with some issues on this year’s budget, unanimously approving several modifications including $72,100 in expenses from the speed camera fund to purchase police vehicles.

 

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American Traffic Solutions (ATS) is honored to introduce its two new clients: Atlanta Independent School System, in Georgia, and the city of Fayetteville, North Carolina. ATS will provide Fayetteville with a red-light safety camera program in accordance with the terms of their five-year agreement. In its partnership with Atlanta Public Schools, ATS will provide a school bus stop arm safety camera program. The agreement carries an initial term of five years. Additionally, ATS is pleased to announce a new agreement with the city of Akron, Ohio, that extends the city’s speed safety camera program for three successive one-year terms, and continues a partnership that began in 2009. ATS is honored to welcome its new clients and to have its current clients choose to continue their partnerships. ATS is excited to begin working with Atlanta Public Schools and the city of Fayetteville, and to continue working with the city of Akron and all of its clients to meet their road safety goals.

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Understanding New Flex Pass Is a Must for Puget Sound Drivers
KIRO-Radio 97.3 FM/MyNorthwest.com (Washington), March 24, 2015

It’s clunky and will take some getting used to, but the state believes drivers will easily adapt to the new Good To Go “Flex Pass” that will be required to get a free ride in the new Express Toll Lanes on I-405. …  Drivers will need a Flex Pass to ride in the HOV lane for free once the lanes open later this year. State Tolling Director Craig Stone said drivers need to start getting up to speed on how this is going to work. See related article in The Seattle Times. (KIRO-Radio 97.3 FM photo by Chris Sullivan)

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Toll Collector Still on the Job 50 Years Later
The Record/NorthJersey.com (New Jersey), March 23, 2015

After her first eight hours as a Port Authority toll collector, on March 22, 1965, Elizabeth Branch didn’t know if she could survive another shift. She was assigned to the George Washington Bridge truck lane, which meant figuring in her head the toll for each tractor-trailer. Traffic got so backed up, Branch started asking the truckers how much money she should charge. She did return to work the next day, and the day after. Fifty years later, Branch figures, why quit now? (The Record/NorthJersey.com photo by Kevin R. Wexler)

Toll Lane Idea for Mass. Route 3 Gains Traction
The Patriot Ledger (Massachusetts), March 21, 2015

Two years after it started as an unsolicited proposal from a Quincy lawyer, the idea of building an express toll lane down the middle of Route 3 is receiving increasingly serious consideration from state officials. The state Department of Transportation has assembled a team to evaluate concepts for the project, which would be built and operated by private developers, and has initiated plans to gauge local support for the proposal.

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TwitterImage_ATS_DL022615 ATS_RoadSafety VIDEO: FL fact 3-You’ve heard the MYTHS. Now, get the FACTS on how RLSC’s work in Florida: https://youtu.be/G-UN4rdb_L8 #stoponred

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Tweet_DropItAndDrive_Logo_DL032515Drop It And Drive@DropItAndDrive  #WhatIf the distracted driver who caused the injury or death had to tell the family? #accountability

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Commentary: Red-Light Cameras Save Lives; Keep Them
The Virginian-Pilot (Virginia), March 24, 2015

Police officers, traffic engineers and other local officials have long promoted the benefits of photo red systems. Officials in Virginia Beach now have the statistics to back that up. A five-year study found fewer crashes occurred at intersections using the cameras than before the cameras were activated. Citations have also dropped. Nothing like a hole in the wallet to prod behavior.

Commentary: Green Light for Red Light Cameras
USA Today, March 21, 2015

This nation’s appetite for technology is insatiable, and an unprecedented era of innovation has revolutionized how we live in less than a generation. From the smart phone and Wi-Fi in the tech world, to the mapping of the human genome and lifesaving drugs in the medical world, these advances help us to live better and longer lives. So it’s puzzling when a lifesaving technology arrives, is proven to be effective but then has the plug pulled on it without justification. Such is the case today with red-light safety cameras in communities across the nation.

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Editorial: Analysis Shows Photo Enforcement Cameras Work
Muscatine Journal (Iowa), March 26, 2015

The Iowa Department of Transportation passed judgment on traffic cameras deployed by six Iowa communities and the verdict is clear: According to the DOT analysis, traffic cameras work. … The report issued last Tuesday showed effective use of more than two-thirds of the state’s traffic cameras. … There will always be concerns that any enforcement — automated or otherwise — can be driven by revenue. This first study confirms verifiable safety improvements across Iowa from the camera enforcement launched more than a decade ago.

Editorial: Red-Light Cameras Are Key to Safety
The News and Advance (Virginia), March 24, 2015

The numbers are in from a Virginia Beach Police Department study of traffic data from intersections with red-light cameras: Lives are saved, and safety is increased. That’s the upshot of a five-year study. The data would indicate that red-light cameras, intended to cut yellow-light pushing and red-light running, are something any Virginia locality seriously interested in improving highway safety should consider.

 

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“The real victims in this debate are being forgotten. The real victims are the nearly 21,000 people significantly injured or killed in traffic crashes each year in Chicago.”
Ron Burke, Executive Director of the Active Transportation Alliance
WMAQ-TV NBC 5, March 24, 2015

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Traffic violations in the city of Toledo have dropped by 50 to 60 percent overall since red-light safety cameras were installed. Source: Northeast Ohio Media Group/Cleveland.com, March 24, 2015.

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Data in study recently released by the Virginia Police Department shows a decrease in crashes at intersections with red-light cameras in the city. Crashes decreased 12 percent in the three years after cameras were installed as opposed to the three years before installation. Serious, and often, fatal T-bone collisions decreased almost 16 percent. Source: The News and Advance (Virginia), March 24, 2015.