Guilty of Running Red Light in Rowboat

[Old Moparz]

Man ticketed for running red light - in a rowboat   

Link to Story:
http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20070202/NEWS/702020342

Times Herald-Record
February 02, 2007
Westtown — Russell Falkena certainly didn't row his aluminum fishing boat down West Street in Manhattan late last year.

And even if he did — if that was possible — Falkena definitely wouldn't do it with reckless disregard for traffic laws. After all, as he often says, he's a good, Christian man.

But somewhere in the deep machinery of New York City, somewhere between its Departments of Finance and Transportation, it was determined that Falkena had indeed run a red light in his rowboat at 10th Avenue and West Street on Dec. 10.

And the city wanted $50 for this impossibility.

It was a little jarring when, through the envelope's window, Falkena read; "The City of New York vs. Russell C. Falkena."

Inside was a Notice of Liability, what the rest of us call a ticket. It was from the Red Light Camera Monitoring Program of the city's Department of Finance. And, the notice said, "one or more photographs evidencing the violation are shown."

The photos show a black SUV and a close-up of the SUV's license plate: 3702PH.

It was a head-scratcher. Falkena, a 46-year-old father of two, doesn't own that kind of car, although it sort of looked like his wife's. And, in fact, he was on a plane from Idaho when the ticket said he was blowing traffic lights on the West Side.

And then there it was, in little letters on the bottom of the ticket: Boat.

Sure enough, 3702PH matched Falkena's fishing boat registration. A small, aluminum, more-or-less abandoned boat that sits, overturned, in some weeds behind a house he recently moved out of.

"That boat," he said, "has been sitting there for years."

One look and it's obvious: You couldn't run a red light in that rowboat. Besides, as he pointed out, boats don't even have license plates.

"Sometimes mistakes are made," said Craig Chin, a spokesman for the New York City Department of Finance. "There's a lot of these going out."

In 2005, the city's red light program issued 306,117 tickets. Of those, 8,690 were appealed, and only 14 percent of those tickets were thrown out.

Since its inception in 1993, the Red Light Camera Monitoring Program, which now consists of 100 cameras at various locations throughout the city, has collected more than $130 million from violations.

A "cash cow," as Falkena calls it. Chin said Falkena's ticket will be dismissed. But it's the principle of the thing that gets him.

"I'm not a fan of Big Brother anyway."

[mikepmcs]

 

[4cruzin]

Thats a whole lot of money from running red lights!  Too many people in a big hurry.     

[Brock Samson]

we have loads of red light camaras here... and tons of folks run the lights...
100 camaras?.. net $ 130,000,000?...  i expect there will be alot more of them...

[PocketThunder]

Is there any easy way to spot a red light camera or are then hidden?

[Charger74]

Is there any easy way to spot a red light camera or are then hidden?

JUst look for the big white boxy looking thing pointing with the flow of traffic.  Usually cannot miss them. 

[red72chrgr]

Remember to watch for those red lights when you're in your row boat.....lol.

[dkn1997]

instead of looking for the cameras, spend the 10 bucks for the license plate clear cover that cannot be photographed.

[Charger_Fan]

Is there any easy way to spot a red light camera or are then hidden?

JUst look for the big white boxy looking thing pointing with the flow of traffic.  Usually cannot miss them. 

Those could just be traffic cameras too. We have them around here (Utah) & thankfully don't have any stinkin' red light cameras...as far as I know, that is.

This guy has the red light camera problem whipped.  

[mikepmcs]

that's alot of work just so someone doesn't see your plate, funny though.  I could never reach my plate on my ironhorse cause i'm only 5'7".

[Charger_Fan]

that's alot of work just so someone doesn't see your plate, funny though.  I could never reach my plate on my ironhorse cause i'm only 5'7".

I know, I don't think I could do it on my bike either. I'd probably snag my foot between the tire & fender and end up in those trees, with the bike on top!

[6pkrunner]

Around here the government would spend several hundreds of thousands of dollars to take the rowboat violator to court, tie him up for several years and eventually pay him a settlement of several million dollars for ruining his life. Then there would be a 5-7 million dollar inquiry to see what went wrong and how to prevent it. Another $3 million for its recommendations which would quickly get shelved and gather dust.

[Old Moparz]

Around here the government would spend several hundreds of thousands of dollars to take the rowboat violator to court, tie him up for several years and eventually pay him a settlement of several million dollars for ruining his life. Then there would be a 5-7 million dollar inquiry to see what went wrong and how to prevent it. Another $3 million for its recommendations which would quickly get shelved and gather dust.

For a moment I thought you might have been from CA.   

[6pkrunner]

For a moment I thought you might have been from CA.   

-Well yes I am. But the CA is not California but Canada. We've got almost the same amount of brainpower in control as the West Coasters do.