Red-Light Cameras May Come to End In 2009 - Texas

Is that for the state of TX or the US?

Here is a link to the article

http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/headline/metro/4807922.h...

msgreenf, I think they was speaking only of the North Texas area. Anyway, it was in the Dallas rag, so really nothing to hang your hat on.

Martin, what is Houston's take on the cameras. Does it look like they may discontinue them?

lets keep in mind that we don't have permission to post copyright news articles here, it is ok to post a link to the article but lets stay away from posting the article itself please.

I have replaced the copy of the article with a link to the article.

Miss Poi

red light cameras are bad enough...but in maryland...they have started with speed enforcement cameras on roads with 35 mph limit

How do the speed cameras work? Do they give you +5-10mph or do you get a ticket at 36mph?

"The cameras are in use by several North Texas cities, including Dallas, Garland, Plano, Richardson and Frisco..."

This must be a quote from the Dallas rag! Red light cams are in use all over Texas and this "feel good" legislation is for ALL of Texas (and only Texas)- not simply North Texas.

Unfortunately for us Texans, this is only "feel good" as it will likely never become law. Even if it does survive to become a law, the law states that red light cameras must be removed and cannot be used after 2009 if the using cities cannot "prove" they have a positive impact on "safety"! The village idiot can come up with stats that "prove" red light cams "improve" safety where used! Red Light camera manufacturer's already do that before they are sold to and adopted by the various city councils. Their primary sales pitch, though, is MONEY! They install the devices at no cost to the city with a sharing agreement on the revenues generated. So, a city can tell their mostly uninformed residents that they can "improve" safety and, oh yeah, generate a large amount of money at NO COST to the taxpayers.

Hard to say "no" to a deal like that!

So, the fight goes on...........

Sugar Land, Texas outside of Houston is about to begin installing units. I hope this goes away.

The short yellow light ticket revenue generators, aka red light cameras, will never go away. They will simply be supplemented with speed camera revenue generators.

Too many city governments are addicted to spending other people's money on themselves and will never cut off any creative source of stealing our money once they have it in place.

Here's an article that was printed some time ago. It's still true today.

http://www.landlinemag.com/Archives/2005/Nov05/news/red_ligh...

If we didn't have Speeders. 40 in a 25 mph zone or speeding past a school zone. 80-85 on the freeways, I know, no camers on the freeways, not yet anyway, and what ever they can get-a-way with in a residential neighborhood, or the person who punches it to go thru a yellow light but turn Red when they reach the cross walk. If we didn't have these drivers there would be no use for the Red Light and Speed Cameras.

Just my 2 cents worth.

Joemac

So your telling us you have never, ever gone faster that any speedlimit or accidently gone through a red light or stop sign. i find it very hard to believe. its just how it is. most of the time though these cameras cause people to be way to cautious and drive way to slow and i think that is what causes a lot of accidents.

I am not against the red light cameras philosophically, if you aren't running the light you don't need to worry. IF the false ones are handled correctly by the PD. I'll go just about any speed if I am traveling with traffic, but never if I am hanging out there by myself (+5-10), I'll admit that is more for fear of getting caught and getting points more than anything else.
In Charlotte the red light program was discontinued because the state courts ruled that, due to some law, something like 75% of the revenue was supposed to go to schools. That left not very much for the city and the contractor and now the city owes the school system a bunch of money, retro-actively. So they canceled the program instead of finding the money. So obviously, the revenue is more important to them than the safety, otherwise they would find the money. And I haven't seen the school system offer to lower their budget to offset the difference either. After all, school bus drivers are some of the biggest speeding offenders in my neighborhood.
I do not run red lights. Can't say I haven't done it by accident as the light changes, but inattention and bad judgement can cause wrecks, too.

In Corpus Christ, tx, tickets are also being issued for not coming to a complete stop before making a right on red. Starting in a few months (trying to find link to the article), cities will have to send half of their red-light earnings to the state of texas and use the other half for public safety improvements to ensure its not just revenue generation.