Free Republic

Michigan lawmakers have introduced bills that would legalize unmanned red light cameras in the state. The bills, House Bill 4763 and 4762, were introduced May 22 by Reps. Wayne Schmidt, R-Traverse City, and Thomas Stallworth III, D-Detroit. The bills define running a red light that's caught on camera as a civil offense. That differs from a 2007 opinion from then-Attorney General Mike Cox, who said Michigan law recognizes red light running as a criminal violation, and the law was not authorized for photo ticketing. On Tuesday, the House Transportation Committee heard testimony on the matter. A representative from a safety...

<p>Those traffic cameras drivers hate and municipal bean counters love have brought a small village in Ohio to a grinding halt.</p> <p>Elmwood Place (pop. 2,188) has seen four of its six Village Council members resign amid public outrage over a flurry of fines issued by the cameras. The devices have raised nearly $2 million for the tiny Cincinnati suburb, but angry drivers and shopkeepers complain the ticket blitz from above could turn downtown Elmwood Place into a ghost town. Now, with two-thirds of the council gone, partly in protest over the cameras, the governing body can't reach a quorum to conduct the people's business.</p>

Contrary to its claims, the City of Chicago’s red light cameras are not based on safety, according to an Inspector General (IG) audit of the program that brought in more than $71 million in revenue for the city last year. The audit, released on May 14, sought to determine if the city’s 384 red light cameras were installed based on the Chicago Department of Transportation’s (CDOT) “stated primary criterion of reducing angle crashes to increase safety.” The IG found no evidence to support the city’s rationale for the program, which is to “increase safety on Chicago streets.”

It is a petition to end what many Tucson drivers describe as a traffic light trap. John Kromko is the man behind the petition. His group, Tucson Traffic Justice, claims the cameras are a scam. ... Ditching the cameras is not as far-fetched as it may seem. More and more cities are shutting down the system including San Diego, Los Angeles and Tempe.

The federal government recommends that yellow lights at intersections last for at least three seconds before turning red. So why are so many yellows being timed at 2.5 seconds? And why are those fleeting yellows often located at intersections where red-light cameras are installed? The mandarins tell us that red-light cameras are for our own safety, and that we need more of them than the 150 already in New York City. “While we wait,” city transportation commissioner Janette Sadik-Khan said last month, “New Yorkers are dying on our streets.” So why increase the mayhem by cutting the duration of the...

Michigan’s local governments would have the option to put cameras at intersections to spot drivers running red lights under proposed legislation in the state House. A measure recently introduced by Republican Rep. Wayne Schmidt of Traverse City would give local communities the power to put cameras in place. “This legislation will give more local control to our municipalities while offering a safer environment for the people who live in these communities,” he said in a statement. The bill has gained the support of local law enforcement officials, who say the cameras will act as an extra deterrent to prevent drivers...

Red-light cameras at three Poway intersections were shut off Friday night to start a six-month trial period. Meeting Tuesday night, the City Council agreed to have the cameras turned off to judge whether their presence makes a difference in the number of accidents at the three intersections. City crews removed the related signs on Saturday. The red-light camera vendor, Rediflex, will not provide any services during the six-month test period, Heidermann said. The city has paid for the service through the end of March but will not be charged the $18,480 monthly fee during the balance of test period, he...

The president, chief financial officer and top lawyer for Chicago's red light camera company resigned this week amid an escalating corruption scandal that has cost Redflex Traffic Systems Inc. its lucrative, decadelong relationship with the city. The resignations came as Redflex said it was winding down a company-funded probe into allegations of an improper relationship between the company and the former city transportation manager who oversaw its contract until 2011, a relationship first disclosed by the Tribune in October. A longtime friend of that city manager was hired by Redflex for a high-paid consulting deal. The company recently acknowledged it...

Like the sun, insulin levels rise and fall in a daily rhythm. Disrupting that cycle may contribute to obesity and diabetes, a new study suggests. Many body systems follow a daily clock known as a circadian rhythm. Body temperature, blood pressure and the release of many hormones are on circadian timers. But until now, no one had shown that insulin — a hormone that helps control how the body uses sugars for energy — also has a daily cycle. Working with mice, researchers at Vanderbilt University in Nashville have found that rodents are more sensitive to insulin’s effects at certain...

El Cajon may be the next city to put a stop to red light cameras. ... San Diego removed its red light cameras last month

Two months after the City Council thought they voted to add more red-light cameras, Mayor Bill Foster slammed the brakes on the increase. Foster's announcement came at a council meeting Thursday after a frequent camera critic pointed out possible problems with the timing of yellow lights at intersections with cameras. Resident Matt Florell gave council members a report this week that showed that 1,645 drivers might have received improper citations because the yellow lights changed to red quicker than they should have in some intersections. Foster said he needs more time to examine the program because the cameras are generating...

Red-light cameras are gaining popularity across the country. Now, New York City is being sued after it was accused of rigging the lights to catch more drivers and write more tickets. They’re “gotcha” cameras, mounted at intersections. Their photos catch and fine drivers running red lights. New York City first had them in 1998. ... By federal law, drivers have to have enough time to get through a yellow light — three seconds at the typical 30 mph intersection. Back in October, engineers at AAA New York discovered a problem. At some intersections with the cameras, the yellow lights were...

Anaheim voters made it clear today they have no interest in having cameras installed at intersections to catch red-light runners. Anaheim voters made it clear today they have no interest in having cameras installed at intersections to catch red-light runners. Voters overwhelmingly approved Measure K, which bans red light cameras from being installed at the city's intersections. City Council members put the issue on the ballot in part because they objected to the idea of using the cameras as a money-raising tool.

Houstonians rejected the city's red light camera program in a hard-fought ballot contest, delivering an immediate $10 million hit to an already dire budget situation at City Hall. With almost all votes counted, a majority of voters put a decisive end to the use of the devices, which had been used to issue more than 800,000 tickets and collected $44 million in fines since 2006. "This is a victory for the people," said Paul Kubosh, an attorney who defends red light runners and collected more than 20,000 signatures with his brothers to get the referendum on the ballot. "The voters...

Sherry D. Matthews swears she stops at every red light. The cameras say different. They've disagreed 41 times since March of last year, according to Knoxville City Court records - sometimes as often as five times in a month. Matthews, who lives in West Knoxville, hadn't paid a single ticket as of last week.

People who ran a light recently at a South Seattle intersection known for red-light cameras have caught a break. The camera ...was stolen earlier this month and police are still searching for it. A police spokesman said they've identified a car they believe was involved in the theft, but the investigation is ongoing. The camera is owned by American Traffic Solutions, the vendor that contracts with the city. Under normal circumstances, the city pays $3,750 per month for the camera service. Between July 26, 2006 -- the first day a red-light camera ticket was issued in Seattle -- and May...

instead of fewer accidents, the number of traffic accidents has gone up at most of the Los Angeles intersections where red-light cameras have been installed.

4 weeks, 10,000 traffic tickets Heath officials say they didn't expect such a windfall Saturday, August 1, 2009 3:01 AM By Josh Jarman THE COLUMBUS DISPATCH HEATH, Ohio -- City officials say they were shocked by the number of violations recorded during the first month of traffic-camera enforcement and decided to make it cheaper to protest multiple tickets. More than 10,000 violations had been recorded by Heath traffic cameras through Tuesday. At $100 apiece, that would net the city a little more than $830,000 after paying the vendor, Redflex, its share. In four weeks, the cameras will have generated an...

It is nearly impossible to go anywhere in the United States of America today and not sense the oppressive sexual culture in which we live. It is a subliminal, hypnotic barrage of immoral images, lewd language and erotic enticements that consciously and subconsciously affects our entire nation. It has gone so far that we have become a base and morally callous people. Where can anyone go today without being continuously bombarded by the “24/ 7” decadent drumbeat of this licentious orchestra? We have indeed become a “Red Light District” nation! This hypnotic drum beat comes from all different sources of...

NORTH HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (KABC) -- Most public officials like red light cameras, but many motorists do not. The city of Los Angeles is concerned it could lose these high-tech "speed catchers" because of one company's financial woes. The red light cameras are scattered at intersections all over Southern California, but the company that runs them is also in the red. "For this particular company, our information is they're $33 million in debt. That's a major problem," said L.A. Councilman Dennis Zine. The company, Nestor Traffic Systems out of Rhode Island, filed for receivership in June.