New Jersey Halts Red Light Cameras
 16 years
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The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) yesterday ordered a halt to red light camera ticketing in 21 cities. The agency became concerned drivers are being shortchanged and the law violated after learning that 63 of 85 photo ticketing intersections failed to meet legal requirements for yellow signal timing. The agency prohibited ticketing at these locations pending certification of each individual intersection's timing.
"It has come to the attention of the department that the pilot program legislation specifies a formula to determine the proper duration of the yellow light in a traffic signal that differs from the legally required, nationally accepted formula that NJDOT or municipalities use when installing traffic signals," NJDOT explained in a statement yesterday.
According to NJDOT, only 22 out of 85 intersections were certified with an appropriate yellow signal timing. The law specifies a typical 35 MPH intersection must have at least 4 seconds of yellow time, and a 45 MPH intersection would be 5 seconds, and so on. This alone provides an extra half-second over NJDOT's timing standard. Most cities achieve shortened yellow times by posting speed limits far below the actual travel speed of traffic. The law prevents this with a an additional provision specifying that the yellow time can only be set according to the speed at which 85 percent of traffic moves. The net result is that the law mandates significantly longer yellows.
New Jersey's automated ticketing ban applies to Newark, Linden, Wayne, Palisades Park, Union Township, Springfield (Union County), Roselle Park, Rahway, Englewood Cliffs, Pohatcong, Piscataway, Edison, East Windsor, Lawrence, Cherry Hill, Stratford, Monroe, Brick and Glassboro.
Finally
It seems that finally someone is trying to be fair.
Bob: My toys: Nüvi 1390T, Droid X2, Nook Color (rooted), Motorola Xoom, Kindle 2, a Yo-Yo and a Slinky. Gotta have toys.
While I don't dispute the intent of the article
The New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) yesterday ordered a halt to red light camera ticketing in 21 cities. The agency became concerned drivers are being shortchanged and the law violated after learning that 63 of 85 photo ticketing intersections failed to meet legal requirements for yellow signal timing. The agency prohibited ticketing at these locations pending certification of each individual intersection's timing.
"It has come to the attention of the department that the pilot program legislation specifies a formula to determine the proper duration of the yellow light in a traffic signal that differs from the legally required, nationally accepted formula that NJDOT or municipalities use when installing traffic signals," NJDOT explained in a statement yesterday.
According to NJDOT, only 22 out of 85 intersections were certified with an appropriate yellow signal timing. The law specifies a typical 35 MPH intersection must have at least 4 seconds of yellow time, and a 45 MPH intersection would be 5 seconds, and so on. This alone provides an extra half-second over NJDOT's timing standard. Most cities achieve shortened yellow times by posting speed limits far below the actual travel speed of traffic. The law prevents this with a an additional provision specifying that the yellow time can only be set according to the speed at which 85 percent of traffic moves. The net result is that the law mandates significantly longer yellows.
New Jersey's automated ticketing ban applies to Newark, Linden, Wayne, Palisades Park, Union Township, Springfield (Union County), Roselle Park, Rahway, Englewood Cliffs, Pohatcong, Piscataway, Edison, East Windsor, Lawrence, Cherry Hill, Stratford, Monroe, Brick and Glassboro.
http://thenewspaper.com/news/38/3824.asp
While I don't dispute the intent of the article, I have to state there is no link to the official declaration from the NJDOT. Without a link or reference to where one could view the NJDOT statement the article approaches being hearsay. It would be extremely difficult to use this article as any sort of factual evidence as it only reports on what the NJDOT is purported to have stated.
(And I have no doubt there were irregularities, it's just this article doesn't allow anyone to verify what is being reported.)
Illiterate? Write for free help.
Better Article
Here are links to better articlec
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/nj_slams_the_breaks...
http://nj1015.com/njs-red-light-camera-program-mostly-on-hol...
Link For NJDOT Regulation On Yellow Lights
“The NJDOT rule for calculating the yellow change interval is:
One second for every 10 miles per hour (minimum of 3 seconds)
For speeds above 30 mph, the yellow time must be rounded upward.
Examples: 35MPH= 4 seconds yellow
45 MPH= 5 seconds yellow
55MPH= 6 seconds yellow “
Information can be read here:
http://www.state.nj.us/transportation/eng/documents/BDC/pdf/...
Nuvi 2460LMT 2 Units
thanks
Here are links to better articlec
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/nj_slams_the_breaks...
http://nj1015.com/njs-red-light-camera-program-mostly-on-hold/
This supplies the information "The Newspaper" was missing.
Illiterate? Write for free help.
NJ - RLC's
I hope Maryland stops it too.
Iowa is also trying to stop the cameras
January 25, 2012 DES MOINES --- A coalition of police officers and city officials squared off against a radio talk show host in front of a legislative panel Wednesday over a bill that would ban red-light and speed cameras in the state.
Several cities in the state, including Davenport, Muscatine and Sioux City, use cameras to enforce traffic laws by ticketing speeders and red-light runners.
House Republicans are trying for the second year in a row to push a ban. Last year, the House ultimately passed a compromise bill that restricted how cameras could be used and limited the fines cities could charge, but that bill died in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
The current bill, House File 2048, calls for a ban on the cameras and says all existing cameras must be removed by July 1.
Rep. Walt Rogers, R-Cedar Falls, is the lead sponsor and chairman of the transportation subcommittee that took up and approved the bill Wednesday. He said he's been encouraged by comments from Senate leadership that a bill might get a hearing in the Senate - provided it passes the House.
He framed the debate as a balancing act between personal liberty and public safety.
"How much of a police state do we want to have?" he asked.
Officers from Cedar Rapids and Des Moines came down strongly on the public safety side, saying the cameras have reduced the number of accidents and injuries since they've been put in.
"From an officer's standpoint, they're working," Cedar Rapids Capt. Steve O'Konek said. He noted injury accidents have dropped 75 percent on Interstate 380 since cameras were put in and traffic crashes on the interstate's curves are down 82 percent.
Tom Stanberry, a lobbyist with the Iowa Insurance Institute, said the cameras help keep insurance premiums low. Dennis Henderson, Clive's city manager, said the cameras are the next evolution in traffic enforcement.
"A lot of people complained about the switch from stop watches to radar enforcement," he said.
Bruce Bergman, a lobbyist with the Iowa League of Cities, added that the issue is really about local control. He said the revenue from the cameras helps shore up city budgets.
"Are you saying cities become dependent on the revenue?" asked Rep. Ralph Watts, R-Adel.
"Dependent? No," Bergman said. "The revenue allows them to do more without raising taxes."
On the other side of the debate was Des Moines radio host Simon Conway. Last week, Conway and American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa Executive Director Ben Stone delivered more than 10,000 petition signatures to Gov. Terry Branstad seeking a ban on the cameras.
Conway said the statistics from the police departments aren't reliable because they don't account for changes in weather or changes in driving patterns of people who want to avoid the cameras.
Police departments "all over the country are doing the same kind of smoke-and-mirrors stuff," Conway said. He said the issue is one that has captured the attention of the public.
"If I was extremely lazy, I could say, ‘We're going to talk about cameras today,' and then put my feet up for the next three hours as the calls come in," the radio host said.
The measure now moves to the full committee for consideration. - A coalition of police officers and city officials squared off against a radio talk show host in front of a legislative panel Wednesday over a bill that would ban red-light and speed cameras in the state.
Several cities in the state, including Davenport, Muscatine and Sioux City, use cameras to enforce traffic laws by ticketing speeders and red-light runners.
House Republicans are trying for the second year in a row to push a ban. Last year, the House ultimately passed a compromise bill that restricted how cameras could be used and limited the fines cities could charge, but that bill died in the Democrat-controlled Senate.
The current bill, House File 2048, calls for a ban on the cameras and says all existing cameras must be removed by July 1.
Rep. Walt Rogers, R-Cedar Falls, is the lead sponsor and chairman of the bill that took up the bill Wednesday. He said he's been encouraged by comments from Senate leadership that a bill might get a hearing in the Senate - provided it passes the House.
He framed the debate as a balancing act between personal liberty and public safety.
"How much of a police state do we want to have?" he asked.
Officers from Cedar Rapids and Des Moines came down strongly on the public safety side, saying the cameras have reduced the number of accidents and injuries since they've been put in.
"From an officer's standpoint, they're working," Cedar Rapids Capt. Steve O'Konek said. He noted injury accidents have dropped 75 percent on Interstate 380 since cameras were put in and traffic crashes on the interstate's curves are down 82 percent.
Tom Stanberry, a lobbyist with the Iowa Insurance Institute, said the cameras help keep insurance premiums low. Dennis Henderson, Clive's city manager, said the cameras are the next evolution in traffic enforcement.
"A lot of people complained about the switch from stop watches to radar enforcement," he said.
Bruce Bergman, a lobbyist with the Iowa League of Cities, added that the issue is really about local control. He said the revenue from the cameras helps shore up city budgets.
"Are you saying cities become dependent on the revenue?" asked Rep. Ralph Watts, R-Adel.
"Dependent? No," Bergman said. "The revenue allows them to do more without raising taxes."
On the other side of the debate was Des Moines radio host Simon Conway. Last week, Conway and American Civil Liberties Union of Iowa Executive Director Ben Stone delivered more than 10,000 petition signatures to Gov. Terry Branstad seeking a ban on the cameras.
Conway said the statistics from the police departments aren't reliable because they don't account for changes in weather or changes in driving patterns of people who want to avoid the cameras.
Police departments "all over the country are doing the same kind of smoke-and-mirrors stuff," Conway said. He said the issue is one that has captured the attention of the public.
"If I was extremely lazy, I could say, ‘We're going to talk about cameras today,' and then put my feet up for the next three hours as the calls come in," the radio host said.
The measure now moves to the full committee for consideration.
Read More: http://wcfcourier.com/news/local/govt-and-politics/iowa-hous...
Harry to the Corps
Putting an end to redlight camera in NJ
Starts to get interesting.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/2_nj_lawmakers_want...
nuvi 2460LMT
Interesting indeed
Starts to get interesting.
http://www.nj.com/news/index.ssf/2012/06/2_nj_lawmakers_want_an_end_to.html
From the article
How much money have towns made from the program?
That's not immediately clear because the state's Administrative Office of the Courts does not differentiate between red-light tickets issued by police officers and cameras.
1490LMT 1450LMT 295w
HALTING RED LIGHT CAMERAS
THIS IS FOR SOME COUNTIES IN N.J. AT THIS TIME. IMAGINE NOW AND STEP BACK..... MULTIPLY THIS BY ALL THE OTHER COUNTIES IN ALL THE OTHER STATES..... MUCHO DINERO......
@FPINTADO
THIS IS FOR SOME COUNTIES IN N.J. AT THIS TIME. IMAGINE NOW AND STEP BACK..... MULTIPLY THIS BY ALL THE OTHER COUNTIES IN ALL THE OTHER STATES..... MUCHO DINERO......
Please do not use all caps. It is shouting! and also harder to read.
Nuvi 2460LMT.
good move
I think the suspension is justified. The municipalities need to follow the law, just as motorists must.
Correct the defects, then resume the program. Everything must be for the greater good.
calculate how much in revenue is lost during the suspension, and add a surcharge to people who are caught in the future. just kidding.
I think all intelligent people are for red light cams, but it must be done the right way. It is not OK to shorten yellows and catch more people.