Speeding Ticket Cameras

[Destitute]

http://www.washtimes.com/metro/20040...0524-5559r.htm

Camera nabs 788 speeders in 2 days


By Arlo Wagner
THE WASHINGTON TIMES




The District's newest photo-radar camera in Northeast caught 788 speeding drivers in the first 48 hours of enforcement, generating at least $23,640 in fines, police said yesterday.
The camera on Sunday caught 504 cars speeding in the 600 block of Florida Avenue, where the speed limit is 25 mph. On Monday, it caught 284 cars traveling above the speed limit, police said.
"All we want it to do is detect those people who are speeding aggressively," said Kevin P. Morison, a spokesman for the Metropolitan Police Department. "We hope it will result in lower speeds."
Mr. Morison said speeders made up 17.9 percent of the 2,900 vehicles passing through on Sunday. He said the highest recorded speed was 73 mph.
Speeding drivers made up 13 percent of the 2,200 motorists in the area Monday, he said. The highest recorded speed that day was 58 mph.
The fixed camera, which is the first of its kind in North America, is near the entrance of Gallaudet University, an area where speeding has been a problem. Since 1998, at least four persons have been killed in speed-related accidents in the area.
Mr. Morison said police are in the process of mailing out the tickets to the speeding drivers. Those motorists with the highest speeds would be required to pay as much as $200 for the violation. Others would be required to pay at least a $30 fine.
Photo-enforced violations, however, do not carry any points in the District.
Police started issuing tickets on Sunday, almost a month after they activated the camera and began warning drivers who were caught speeding on Florida Avenue.
Police said they mailed an average of 585 warnings a day to speeding drivers, or more than 20,000 notices during the 30-day warning period that began Feb. 27. The highest speed recorded in that period was 88 mph, Mr. Morison had said.
Now, registered owners of the vehicles caught speeding will receive notices of infraction, with photographs of their vehicle and license-plate number and the speed recorded by the radar.
Motorists caught driving up to 10 mph over the speed limit will be required to pay a $30 fine. Those caught driving 26 to 30 mph over the limit will be ordered to pay up to a $200 fine.
All motorists are given up to 30 days to pay the fines or adjudicate the citation. Police will double the fines and track down those owners who don't pay on time.
"At some point, we will turn it over to the collection agency," Mr. Morison said.
The camera on Florida Avenue is expected to generate millions in ticket revenue.
Since the District implemented red-light cameras in 1999 and speeding cameras in 2001, the automated traffic-enforcement program has generated more than $70 million in fines.
Red-light cameras at 39 city intersections have generated more than $23.5 million in fines since they were set up in August 1999. Fines from the speeding or photo-radar cameras total more than $45 million since August 2001, when they were installed.
Affiliated Computer Services of Dallas operates the cameras and goes through the 35-millimeter photographs each day to find violators. Police help ACS by matching license-plate numbers to vehicle registrations and the registered owners' home addresses.
ACS is paid $190,000 a month for the red-light cameras' operation and upkeep and $570,000 a month for the seven speed cameras. The District initially expected to pay ACS a percentage of the fines, but later agreed to pay a flat monthly fee.

[Destitute]

http://www.suntimes.com/output/news/...orkzone31.html


Cameras to bust speeders
March 31, 2004

BY SHAMUS TOOMEY Transportation Reporter Advertisement







Radar-activated cameras would shoot photos of cars speeding through tollway work zones under a proposal from Gov. Blagojevich that also would hike fines for the speeders to as high as $1,000.

Four other states now use the cop-in-a-box technology to catch and ticket speeders, but Illinois would be the first to target highway work zones.

Forty-four people, including five road workers, were killed in Illinois work zones last year, state officials said. Two other highway workers were killed by drivers away from work zones in 2003, making it the deadliest construction season in at least five years.

The deaths launched a state task force and spurred Tuesday's proposals, which need to be approved by the General Assembly to take effect.

As part of the effort, the state on Tuesday unveiled a new "Keep Us Alive Drive 45" safety campaign, which uses bright orange ribbons to honor dead workers and remind people to watch out for the current workers.

"Before you get into your vehicle . . . think about the lives of others, the children who are left behind by reckless drivers, the husbands, the wives," said Anna Johnson. Her older sister, highway worker Tina Ball, was killed by an accused drunken driver last September in an Interstate 57 work zone.

"It just takes one split second to take the life of a hard-working person," Johnson said.

The governor's proposal would launch a pilot program to try out the speed-tracking cameras. Drivers going faster than 45 mph through construction zones when workers are present could activate a camera that photographs the car and license plate.

Similar to Chicago's system of catching red light runners on camera, the state would then mail a ticket to the car's owner. It would not be a moving violation but would carry a fine.

The governor moved to hike those fines Tuesday. Speeding through a work zone currently costs $200 for a first offense and $350 for subsequent tickets.

The new proposal would make the first offense a $500 ticket. Subsequent tickets would shoot to $1,000 apiece -- including $250 to fund more state troopers who would patrol the roads.

"Anybody who doesn't take these laws seriously will understand there are consequences from now on," Transportation Secretary Tim Martin said.

Several work zone changes don't need legislative approval and will take effect soon. They include:

*Placing plainclothes troopers with radar guns in construction vehicles to radio descriptions of speeding cars to troopers ahead.

*Spending $40,000 in grant money on 20 electronic flaggers that tell drivers to slow or stop. Each machine needs a worker to run it but allows the worker to stand several feet from the road.

*Installing large road signs that read "Hit a Worker, $10,000 fine, 14 yrs in jail." Last year's strategy of using children's names and handwriting on warning signs "evidently wasn't enough," said Martin.

[Debs]

We had those in Ontario a couple of years back. BRUTAL. A complete and utter cash grab. It'll go off if you are even slightly over the speed limit.

It was one of the reasons that government was voted out in the next election and the whole thing was scrapped.

[Destitute]

Thankfully the ones in MI don't give out tickets. They're great for getting trap speeds - just make sure a cop isn't waiting nearby

[Debs]

the worst is when you are driving down the highway at night and go under an overpass and the truck is set up behind (tricky!). You see this bright white light flashing in your rearview and SWEAR SWEAR SWEAR!


they can't assign points to your licence because they cannot prove it was YOU driving the car. Only a $$ fine to the registered owner.

[Corey]

Speeding cameras are great revenue producers. The cost per camera turns out to be far less than keeping cops on the hunt for speeders. This is one of those things that severely blurs the lines between law enforcement and revenue collectors.