Anybody else hate these new red light cameras?

[daytonalo]

My cover is on it's way !!!

[defiance]

Am I the only outlaw on here Buy A clear plate cover from internet , it has clear Prism tape on inside , what does this do From directly behind , ground level , plate looks normal , stand to right or left side and plate is skewed and camera cant read it !! Trust me this is no bullshit , know a guy who has never payed a toll for the last 5 years !!

As a note on that, just saw a mythbusters episode on that, none of them worked according to them...
Not that I always agree with their methodology

[daytonalo]

Trust me they didn't test this one , my Buddy has not paid a toll in 5 years and no tickets !!! Trust me , they distort the plate from angle I di d see that episode , they shot the car from plate level , not from side where a camera would be mounted , do you get me

[Mike DC]

 
Saving lives doesn't automatically justify something.  That's what makes it a free country.   

We could save a ton of lives if we just put the interstate speed limit down to 30 mph.




If we're gonna do this stuff, then we should be issuing an occasional ticket, with a MAJOR legal/financial penalty, to those who blow through the red light by a wide margin.  That would actually make the roads safer by weeding out the real violators and not penalizing the everyday person. 

   

[Forza]

If you hate the red light cameras, don't run the damn red light. You may think its a joke and a scam to suck money from the average Joe but everytime some jackass runs the redlight it could result in a fatality. I don't know about you but when I die I don't want it to be because some toolbag ran a light and nailed my ass to oblivion.

[Mike DC]

 
By that line of reasoning, we shoudln't have legal firearms either.

  

Personally, I would rather take my chances with red-light runners than give the government the power to convict & fine me based on nothing but a camera image. 

[2Gunz]

So how long before we get that swear ticket thing from Demolition Man?

[defiance]

Personally, I would rather take my chances with red-light runners than give the government the power to convict & fine me based on nothing but a camera image.

Again, that has NOTHING to do with the cameras, it's the same thing when you're pulled over, you are assumed guilty.  It's the backend process that's the problem.

[MOPARHOUND!]

What Brock posted about increasing rear-enders is true.

"Red-light cameras increase crashes and costs, USF report finds"

Recent article, March 11, 2008, University of South Florida and other studies noted:

http://hscweb3.hsc.usf.edu/health/now/?p=404


Old article, with great points being made, written by a United State Congressman:

http://www.highwayrobbery.net/TickRedCamArmeynewstruth.asp

[MOPARHOUND!]

"I'm with the government, and I'm here to help you"................LOL.

Former Executive Assistant Metropolitan Police Chief Terrance W. Gainer said in January last year that "300 or so errors" should be expected when tens of thousands of tickets are issued monthly but that would not be a "show stopper" for the program. Later that month, the city was forced to admit wrongdoing when it was found guessing license plate numbers and issuing tickets to residents who didn't own the cars in the photos.   

Another:

Jill Bucciarelli of Cardiff, Calif. leans on her BMW and displays the 'red light camera' ticket she received in the mail from San Diego police. Bucciarelli's ticket shows photos of her running a red light with statistics stating she ran the light .05 seconds after it turned red.     A judge dismissed the citations against Bucciarelli and some 400 other motorists who were photographed running red lights at San Diego intersections.   

Another:

Please reconsider the red-light cameras, mayor: Providence Mayor David N. Cicilline unveiled a plan on Wednesday (Cicilline pledges to fight budget woes, reg.req.) to address a $58.9 million budget deficit and a $526 million unfunded pension liability that, he says, threatens to bankrupt the city within 10 years unless drastic steps are taken.

One element of the plan is "cameras that would photograph red light violators, enabling the city to send them traffic citations and raising an estimated $1.9 million in six months." 

Another:

In San Diego, according to AP (Red Light Cameras Yielding Outcry), "The police union denounced them after five on-duty officers received citations."   

Last one:

Safety was never the primary consideration. In fact, none of the devices were placed at any of San Diego's top-ten most dangerous intersections. Instead, the documents tell us how the camera operators consciously sought out mistimed intersections as locations for new red light cameras.

Yellow signal time at intersections turns out to be directly related to "red light running." Simply put, when the yellow light is short, more people enter on red. Inadequate yellow time causes a condition where individuals approaching an intersection are unable either to come to a safe stop or proceed safely before the light turns red.   

[Brock Samson]

gotta love this...

http://www.caranddriver.com/features/columns/c_d_staff/patrick_bedard/red_light_cameras_and_the_secret_gotcha_line_column

[0X01B8]

Imagine how many lives we can save if we just lowered the speed limit to 21 and raised the drinking age to 55!  That's from a Brock Yates column a long time ago.

[Khyron]

Hmmm, same thought here, I can narrow it down to the last 7 1/2 years of our federal "government"... 

it's been going on a lot longer then that 

[hutch]

I hate anything thats designed as a way to generate money for a city or county in the name of safty.  Its a scam.

[tkkruzer]

Imagine how many lives we can save if we just lowered the speed limit to 21 and raised the drinking age to 55!  That's from a Brock Yates column a long time ago.

just think of all the endangered species of insects we would save from a terrible death against your windshield if we would ondy drive 15 to 20 mph and I think we should take the wings off of aircraft and make them travel on freeways at 20 mph to save all the poor birds  the fact is we want big brother to insure our safety at all times so what do we expect when this happens  Tom

[Brock Samson]

   I really like the way your drinkin,.. hic...

[raybeez]

I'd like to add to this again...

I kind of like the red light cams ~ although I would have gotten the ticket for going through a red light. But the reason I went through the red light was because I was SMASHED INTO FROM BEHIND while I was sitting at the red light. (I was shot through the intersection like a cork).

There was a thing on the local news channel about photo radar/red light cams. I guess somebody there got a ticket, 'cause they ran a story for about a week on the truth behind photo radar and red light cams. (Somebody in the news crew doesn't like the cameras). Here's one of the stories they ran ...

A town outside of Phoenix Arizona had red light cams up, due to accidents. After the cameras were up this town wanted to try to cut down accidents themselves and raised the time the yellow light was on from like 3 seconds to like 5 seconds. The accidents were CUT by 60%
Unfortunately, this town had a contract with Redflex (photo radar company). Since the yellow light time was raised, there weren't so many photos/tickets being issued. This was in violation of the contract the town had with Redflex. In their contract, Redflex is GUARANTEED so many tickets per month. (Which would make sense since Reflex gets a cut from every ticket).
So the town had to send a check to Redflex for the amount of money the cameras WOULD have made!

Just about EVERY town that has photo radar/red light cams have a contract with the camera company. The camera company is GUARANTEED so much money per month per camera.
Oh and the news story also stated that there is an actual law where it states how long a yellow light must be lit. Don't remember what it is though.

I am VERY interested in finding out about those photo radar blockers for your license plate. I too saw the mythbusters, who stated that NOTHING blocks the photo radar. I've seen them on cars, but never got the chance to ask someone who actually has one if they work.

Keep us informed and updated Daytonalo 

[bull]

Now they're saying the red light cams are working too good: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/23710970/

Red light cameras too good for their own good?
Some cities rethink devices as drivers pay heed, reducing fine revenue

Excerpt:

So last week, the city (Dallas) turned off about a quarter of the least profitable cameras, saying it couldn't justify the cost of running them.

Safety benefits questioned
Dallas was just following the lead of several other cities that have shut down red light cameras in recent months:

*City officials in Charlotte and Fayetteville, N.C., recently turned off all of their red light cameras, concluding that a state law diverting much of the revenue they generate in fines to schools meant their general funds were actually losing money, NBC affiliate WNCN of Raleigh reported.

*San Diego temporarily shut down all of its red light cameras late last year pending a lawsuit that sought $27 million in damages, alleging that the city's system was unconstitutional because it was run by a private company. The city's system faces a separate class-action suit targeting evidence gathered by cameras as illegal.

*Officials in Bolingbrook, Ill., ended their red light camera program after statistics showed a 40 percent drop in ticketable offenses.
It's not always lower revenue that leads municipalities to question whether red light cameras are worth it.

In Lubbock, Texas, for example, the City Council shut down all cameras last month, citing a report that showed statistically significant increases in rear-end collisions at intersections, including those with cameras.