It’s Not Just About the Revenue

Some individuals view this as an element of Big Brother and are against it. Others say it’s only a way to make revenue from motorists. Those opponents don’t seem to see the safety reasoning as well as the cost-effective automation of law enforcement by adding these cameras at intersections to catch violators.

The reality of red-light cameras is they will eventually change the behavior pattern of those who figure they’re too important to stop and wait for the light to recycle back to green. Those politicians who think red-light cameras are the end-of-the-rainbow answer to declining revenues are sadly mistaken.

Are those who are the most vehement in their opposition actually chronic red-light abusers? I’m for cameras as a way to penalize those drivers who fly through an intersection after the light has turned red. They are a danger not only to themselves but to anyone around them.

Maximizing This Investment

Some say Illinois is looking to expand the authority of the camera to include speeding. While it sounds like a natural progression according to some police officials I’ve talked to, I don’t think that should be the next step.

Speeding tickets have always been a supplemental revenue generator for those municipalities that refuse to balance their budget by either cutting back or charging their residents what they need to provide services. The worst suburbs establish artificially low speed limits on high-volume streets and then enforce them to generate revenue.

That approach is not about safety. It’s about revenue.

In some cases, the rabid enforcement is so blatant that you feel you have been targeted by the sheriff of Nottingham to pay tribute as you travel through the area. If they are going to use cameras, then set the speed limit to a reasonable speed rather than one that tries to balance the shortcomings of budgets on ticket revenues.

Is “speed kills” fact or fiction? The hype about slowing down vehicles to avoid deadly accidents is a myth. Just look at the autobahn in Germany:

Germany has stretches of highway with no speed limit. Cars [there] are built for speeds [in excess of] 100 miles per hour.

They do it with fewer car-accident deaths per capita than people in the United States. [Information] from 1999 at NationMaster.com has the U.S. leading in “motor vehicle” deaths per 100,000 population at 15.5. Germany is 9.8.

Instead of speeding enforcement, the next logical step in utilizing the cameras should be to check for insurance once a vehicle is captured by the camera. Just like when you get pulled over for any violation, the first thing the officer asks for is a valid insurance card along with your license.

Automating the approach to the insurance-checking process should be instituted to check to see if the vehicle is insured. Getting uninsured motorists and vehicles off the road should be a priority. With the economy the way it is, don’t believe for a second that motorists have insurance on their vehicle even in those states like Illinois where insurance is mandatory.

Insurance is one of the first things people drop in order to save some money. While you might not do it because you have other substantial assets that people could come after for damages, there are many people who don’t have to worry about that.

Have you ever been hit by an uninsured motorist? Be prepared for a higher level of frustration than the already high frustration level with trying to sort through an accident. Uninsured motorists should not be on any highway. I’m surprised the insurance companies aren’t lobbying for this.

Highway Applications: Start With Lane Enforcement

Instead of speeding enforcement, if the state is looking for revenue it should set up cameras to enforce lane restrictions for trucks. How many times do you get slowed down in expressway traffic because a truck is driving slowly in the left lane?

This application was suggested by a person who isn’t for cameras but sees a huge value if cameras were used to enforce lane restrictions on expressways and alleviate traffic flows. He’s more frustrated by the frequent slowdowns on expressways due to trucks running in all the lanes when there are signs up restricting them to the two right lanes.

Isn’t the goal to improve traffic flows? We should start thinking of “how to apply the right technology right” instead of just applying the right technology as a way to prop up declining revenues.

Carlinism: If you make the investment, maximize the return on it.