Haines City Cameras Make $1M in 1st Month

In the first month, Haine City, Florida has ticketed 7,066 drivers for making illegal right-hand turns or running red lights. At $158 the fines total approximately $1.1 million. In the month the red light camera photo enforcement system has been operating, the cameras have taken 20,756 photographs, and of those only 50% have captured violations.

Based on $158, $83 goes to the state while the city receives $75. The city leases the 10 cameras from Arizona-based Automated Traffic Solutions.  Florida's estimated that the red light cameras would bring in $29M in 2011 and nearly $100M in 2012 into state coffers, and would provide about $75M to local governments. Haines City projects the city could receive $5.4 million annually from the citation revenue at the current run rate.

Red-light cameras net $1.1-million so far: MyFoxTAMPABAY.com

Dayton Ohio Gets 10 New Speed Cameras

Dayton is one of just a few cities around the US that is beginning to use speed cameras. In Europe, there are upwards of 40,000 cameras throughout the region. However, the United States has been slow to adopt the automated speed enforcement method.  We have all of Dayton locations and others around the US listed in our speed camera database. 

Dayton Ohio city officials are moving forward with plans to add photo speed enforcement cameras near 10 of the city’s most dangerous accident areas for automobile travelers. The automated cameras likely will be installed by late April or early May, and speeding drivers will be given a 30-day grace period. After the grace period ends an $85 fine will be issued.

Dayton will keep $55 of that fine and the rest will go to the camera company Redflex which is based in Scottsdale Arizona. Redflex is paying to install the equipment and will do the initial processing of the tickets before Dayton police will give final approval before the tickets are mailed.

Which States Ban the Use of Red Light Cameras?

State Laws vs City Laws

Here is a list of fifteen US States that have banned the use of red light cameras.  Most State laws prohibit the use of new photo enforcement locations by cities and municipalities who might be considering it.  However,  there are a few cities that were using cameras before the State law was passed and the camera usage maybe grandfathered in.  It remains to be seen what will happen if States begin to pass laws banning cameras if they will require cities to remove them.  For example, the state of Florida used the State law to ban the cameras but they are still widely used in many cities.  Could this be a dirty legal tactic for the States to get leverage in order participate in the revenue share with the municipality?  I suspect were are going to see more State legislatures passing laws that ban the cameras simply to use this as leverage to share in the State revenue with the City.   Here are the States below that have passed laws banning them from 1995 - 2010. 

Wisconsin 1995 
Utah 1996 
Alaska 1997 
Nebraska 1999 
Nevada 1999 
Arkansas 2005 
New Hampshire 2006 
West Virginia 2006 
Michigan 2007 
Minnesota 2007 
Indiana 2008 
Maine 2009 
Mississippi 2009 
Montana 2009 
South Carolina 2010  

10 Reasons Why Roundabouts Are Safer Than Red Light Intersections

Anyone who has traveled to Europe understands the convenience of driving without traffic lights and the improvement in traffic flow.  Cities all over the US are beginning to convert traditional unsafe red light camera intersections to roundabouts for several reasons. Converting traditional red light camera intersections to roundabouts eliminates the need for traffic signals as well as cameras and has many benefits listed below.  It has been reported that conversion of traditional intersections to roundabouts reduces fatal crashes by 81-90 percent, injury crashes by 25-87 percent, and overall crashes by 37-61 percent. However, it is not feasible to replace every traffic light with a roundabout, and not every intersection is appropriate for a roundabout.  Ready more about roundabouts saving lives. 

1. Up to a 90% reduction in fatalities, 76% reduction in injury crashes, 30-40% reduction in pedestrian crashes
2. Reduces the severity of crashes
3. 75% fewer conflict points than four way intersections 
4. Drivers have more time to judge and react to other cars or pedestrians
5. Slower vehicle speeds (under 30 mph) 
6. Efficient traffic flow 30-50% increase in traffic capacity
7. Improved traffic flow for intersections that handle a high number of left turns
8. No signal equipment to install and repair savings estimated at an average of $5,000 per year in electricity and maintenance costs
9. Service life of a roundabout is 25 years (vs. the 10-year service life of signal equipment)
10. Aesthetic landscaping