Tampa joins St. Pete voting Red Light Cameras out.

If I had known that the mayor was a weasel with a rubber stamp police chief I would not have gone to Tampa last week!

dobs108

As soon as the Mayor agrees to divert some of the RLC revenue to the favorite cause(s) of the Council members they will all vote to keep them. You can take that to the bank.

St. Petersburg was a different story, the new elected mayor didn't want it, and sometime before September the cameras were going to break even or start loosing money.

The cameras in general operate like a ponsy scheme, when first installed they generate tons of money, as drivers become aware of the locations the revenue falls, the reason Tampa’s cameras are still generating money is because they keep adding them to new locations making up for the locations that are revenue neutral or loosing money.

So the choices they have are either stop the program from bleeding the general fund or continue to add cameras and perhaps move the existing ones.

Sounds like a relatively small city. Just imagine even meeting over 1.6 mil. There are individuals in the USA who make more than that on a single business deal (like my employers). That's the problem as I see it, even the smallest, nonsense thing, like saying, "Gosh, people shouldn't run red lights," our govt. can even accomplish something that simple.

Now, when the rest of the U.S. goes that way...

Nuvi1300WTGPS

Good riddance!

Police Chief? She has nothing to do with it. She is also well respected in the law enforcement community, but it's obvious you have a bit of an axe to grind.

The weasels in city council voted to keep the RLC program for another two years, the mayor hinted that new cameras may be added, he knows the gig, for the pyramid to work new locations are needed otherwise the revenue will dry up as it happen in St. Pete.

The generated revenue will be needed to pay the salary and the retirement benefits of the double dipping Chief of police.

He sure does. Anybody with a mouse and keyboard can post nonsense, eh? On my commute every single day I see accidents, many of which are the result of someone breaking the law (not stopping, passing on a double yellow, wrong way for only 3/4 block, etc.). Where there are cams 4-ways, never seen an accident (though usually many flashes). You don't see much of that BS in DC, due to enforcement by cameras. Wonder how that poster would feel in LA or SF, where the fine is north of 4 and a half large bills.

Once they stop feeding the city coffers, they are gone. You would think this is about safety. Follow the money.

Your view of the cameras is as mistaken as the council was in approving them in the first place. Companies such as RedFlex or ATS come in and sell the council on the idea of "free" money if you use our cameras. When the ink is finally on the paper, the city sees it guarantees the company they will pay X dollars per month, per camera. As long as the number of idiots that blow the light because they are in too much of a hurry or think themselves above the law generate clicks that are above the cost being charged for the camera, everything is fine. But when habits change or the self-important idiots change their routes, then the number of clicks goes down but the cost hasn't changed.

The other piece of the pie you are missing is the state takes a fixed amount of each ticket as well. Their piece of the ticket is many times far more than the city's portion which is also used to pay for the camera. The only one getting "free money" in Florida is the state. They don't do anything for their share.

But I love the current movement for cities to pull the darn things.

I can't believe they voted to keep them!

tax will be increase.

First of all the police chief is a she (JANE Castor), not a he. She does not have a vote on the issue. The City Council reversed itself after there was a concession made to earmark a portion of the RLC proceeds to intersection improvement. The evidence presented to the council indicated that both tickets issued and accidents have decreased significantly at the affected intersections.

I am not in favor of RLCs, I am just accurately reporting what transpired and who was involved.

Tampa's failure to renegotiate contract means most revenues go to camera company, not safety

http://www.wtsp.com/story/news/investigations/2015/05/18/mor...

TAMPA: FULL SPEED AHEAD DESPITE PLUMMETING REVENUES

No community in West/Central Florida has stood by red light cameras like the city of Tampa. Now with 55 cameras, the city issues tens of thousands of tickets to drivers a year.

But longer yellow lights have virtually eliminated Tampa's profits, too. Some months, the program runs a deficit, although ATS doesn't ever bill more than the city collects in fines. Officers who review violations are paid out of the police department's budget, but incoming chief Eric Ward indicated the city has no plans to change its plans on RLC.

"Well, the ultimate goal of the red light cameras is to change driving behavior. And I think we've done that," Ward said, adding the future of the program was ultimately Mayor Bob Buckhorn's decision.

The program's future in Tampa also lies in the hands of city council, who nearly ended the relationship in 2014 over control of the program's profits. However, because the city ultimately renewed its ATS contract without renegotiating, the city sends nearly all of the fines collected to the camera company.

It's not over yet, folks:

"TAMPA — A coalition of attorneys, including one who won a case that forced several South Florida communities to shutter their red-light camera programs, now has Tampa’s cameras in its sights.

The group of about a dozen law firms filed a lawsuit Tuesday against the City of Tampa and camera provider American Traffic Solutions, arguing that the city illegally delegated enforcement of red-light camera running and the issuing of citations to the camera company.

....

Defeat in court could be costly for Tampa and American Traffic Solutions. The city has issued roughly 190,000 tickets since it began the program in November 2011. It has collected $11.1 million in fines through April 30 with $6.8 million of that going to American Traffic Solutions, city records show."

http://www.tbo.com/news/politics/tampa-sued-by-attorneys-who...

I hope the next thing will be to eliminate highway tools in the Tampa area.

did it ever happen? Because after the post was started, my buddy moved to Tampa, and got a rlc ticket. he emailed me the link to his movie and jpg and it showed him as being the 2nd car that ran the red light.

Based on the flash, the first car got a free pass.

He admitted that he was stone cold busted, his 2 daughters even told him at the time, you just ran a red light.

Funny how my friend said he paid the violation as when you do the crime, you do the time. imho he would be a perfect candidate to oppose the cams, yet he got busted, paid the fine, and didn't think about it too much.

Seems like the technology worked 100%.

In a subsequent vote on the issue the City Council changed their mind and kept the cameras for now. However, the lawsuit that was filed in August may change what happens next. Stay tuned.

The FDOT has stated that they plan to introduce toll lanes (ask "express lanes") as part of their future build-out program for state roadways. There was a September 29th public meeting in Tampa regarding adding toll lanes to I-275 from 22nd Ave N to Gandy Blvd in St. Petersburg.

Get your Sunpass now while supplies last.

Let's hope this trend continues.....