Red-Light Camera Videos Help Police with Investigations
ITS International, Sept. 21, 2016
Red-light, speed and school bus safety cameras are typically used to catch dangerous red-light runners, but law enforcement agencies also use the video and still images to investigate an average of 300 criminal and crash incidents a month. American Traffic Solutions fulfilled more than 20,000 requests for video from Jan. 1, 2011 through May 31, 2016. When permitted by law, police utilize the video and still images to analyze crashes, catch criminals and identify drivers in hit-and-run collisions. See ATS News Release. See infographic.
Fatal Crashes Up Across Florida, Nation
Orlando Sentinel (Florida), Sept. 18, 2016
Seven people in one week. That’s how many people died in vehicle crashes across Central Florida in early September. Four pedestrians were struck and killed. A semi-truck driver died after having a medical emergency and his rig rolled into a ditch. A woman died when her car rear-ended a trailer. “That should not be normal,” said Florida Highway Patrol Trooper Steven Montiero. “When that becomes normal, it’s not a good thing.” (National Safety Council graphic)
Amid Debate over Cameras, Study Notes they Save Lives
WAMU-Radio 88.5 FM (Washington D.C.), Sept. 16, 2016
Critics of D.C.’s red-light camera program say it unevenly enforces the law, dishing out fines intended to fill the District’s treasury, but some researchers say the community should keep the bigger picture in mind. The fines create a deterrent and thus save lives, says Russ Rader, a spokesman for the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. “Among professional traffic safety researchers who look at this carefully, there is no debate about the effectiveness of red-light cameras,” Rader said. (WAMU-Radio 88.5 FM image)
Tampa Extends Red-Light Camera Program for 2 Years
Tampa Bay Times (Florida), Sept. 15, 2016
Bucking a trend that’s swept up several other Tampa Bay area cities, the Tampa City Council voted 4-to-3 to keep the city’s red-light camera program for two more years. With the vote, the city’s contract with American Traffic Solutions will go through Oct. 31, 2018. … Tampa launched its program in 2011 and now has 54 cameras installed at 21 intersections. (The Tampa Tribune image by Todd L. Chappel)
6-Year-Old Struck, Injured when Car Passes School Bus
Boston Herald (Massachusetts), Sept. 19, 2016
A 6-year-old boy was struck by a car Monday after a driver ignored the stop sign on the side of a school bus and drove around it, Chelsea police said. The boy “sustained some bumps and scrapes and was transported to Whidden [Memorial] Hospital via ambulance with his mother,” according to Chelsea Police Chief Brian Kyes.
Parents Are Fed Up with School Bus Stop Traffic Violations
WIBW-TV Channel 13 (Kansas), Sept. 16, 2016
While Stevie Wright waits at her son’s bus stop every morning, she’s noticed something that makes her uneasy. Drivers heading down Topeka Boulevard often don’t stop for the flashing lights of her kindergarten son’s school bus stopping to pick him and the other students up for school. Stevie isn’t the only parent who’s noticed the problem. (WIBW-TV Channel 13 image)
Child Hit by Car at School Bus Stop
WKRG-TV CBS 5 (Alabama), Sept. 16, 2016
A girl was hit by a car at her school bus stop Friday morning. The collision happened at an intersection south of Foley. Witnesses say the driver did not stop for the school bus’s flashing lights or stop sign. The girl appeared to have a leg injury and was taken by ambulance to a hospital. (WKRG-TV CBS 5 image)
Mom Hopes to Get Exterior Cameras on School Buses
KWTV-TV Channel 9 (Oklahoma), Sept. 16, 2016
School districts across the county are releasing startling video of children hit by cars that fail to stop for school buses. It’s a danger a Norman boy knows after he was run over by a driver last year when crossing the street. The collision left tire marks on the boys legs. His pelvis was shattered and he had a brain bleed. He is still recovering from the hit. His mother is now working with the state’s transportation department in hopes of installing external cameras on all school buses in Oklahoma. (KWTV-TV Channel 9 image)
ATS_RoadSafety retweeted David Shilson @FPDShilson A great reminder to young drivers out there #distracted driving kills #SeatBeltsSaveLives @FriscoPD @TeensDriverSeat
ATS_RoadSafety @ATS_RoadSafety Law Enforcement Leverages Road Safety Cameras to Investigate Crashes, Crimes & More prn.to/2cKYRwJ
Lots of Builder Interest in I-55 Toll Lanes
Crain’s Chicago Business (Illinois), Sept. 19, 2016
There sure is a lot of interest in preliminary plans by the Illinois Department of Transportation to expand I-55 by adding privately operated toll lanes in the road’s median. IDOT reports that 18 companies responded to its former Request for Information on the job. (Chicago Tribune image by Jose M. Osorio)
Coalition Would Use Toll Revenue for I-270 Improvements
WTOP-Radio 103.5 FM (Washington D.C.), Sept. 19, 2016
A bipartisan group of community, business and political leaders gathered near Interstate 270 Monday morning pointing to rush hour traffic on the highway and calling for changes they claim would reduce congestion. …. The coalition is calling for improvements, such as new express toll lanes and regional bus rapid transit service. Members say toll revenue would help provide funding. (The Washington Post image by Robert Thompson)
Letter to the Editor: Red-Light Cameras Are for Safety
The Denver Post, Sept. 17, 2016
In my view, Colorado’s use of photo radar is about highway safety, not revenue. Twice, I have paid for speeding citations; once my fault, once I didn’t think so. …. I am tired of watching drivers who speed, intentionally or not, ignore red lights, display ambivalence toward using turn signals, text illegally, and show general disregard for others and for the law.
Letter: Bill Would Better Protect Students at Buses
Poughkeepsie Journal (New York), Sept. 16, 2016
Columnist Anthony Russo correctly identifies the extreme danger that our students in New York are exposed to every day. Dozens of drivers pass stopped school buses despite the presence of multiple flashing red lights. … Present law makes the prosecution of violators very difficult. … A law must be passed before there is a tragedy that brings attention to the problem.