William Tell
04-15-2015, 08:59 AM
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http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/files/2015/04/REDLIGHTCAMERA.jpg (http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/files/2015/04/REDLIGHTCAMERA.jpg)
AUSTIN – Red-light cameras in Dallas and many other North Texas cities would be banned under legislation approved Monday by the Senate Transportation Committee.
The bill by Sen. Bob Hall, R-Canton (http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=84R&Bill=SB714), would explicitly outlaw future camera programs. And it would eventually stop cities that already have such cameras from using them, though some worried that it might allow cities to keep their red-light cameras for years longer.
The perennial debate over red-light cameras centers on a feature beloved by law enforcement and despised by many in the public.
A cavalcade of police officials – from Denton, Grand Prairie, Plano and elsewhere – said such cameras change driver behavior and reduce crashes. But others questioned the cameras’ actual safety impact and argued that they are just municipal revenue generators.
And though Hall and others acknowledged the law enforcement view, the committee voted 5-0 to send the bill to the full Senate.
“The public has expressed great opposition to the growing practice of unmanned, automatic-controlled traffic cameras,” Hall said.
Red-light cameras – and the accompanying $75 fines – have been controversial since their start in Texas in the early 2000s.
Some object to the idea being cited, albeit for a civil ticket, when a police officer isn’t there to witness the violation. Others don’t like that cities like Dallas, due to a contract quirk, can still report unpaid fines to a credit bureau.
Many charge that the cameras are an invasion of privacy. Still others are stunned to find out that only a small amount of the state’s cut (http://www.lbb.state.tx.us/Documents/Publications/Issue_Briefs/275_Red_Light_Cameras.pdf) of the fines has reached its intended destination: regional trauma centers.
And some Texas cities – Arlington could be next – have seen their residents vote to outlaw the cameras.
They’ve been “landslide victories of people saying, ‘Remove these cameras from our streets,” said Kelly Canon, an Arlington resident who’s helped push a May ballot proposition to ban the cameras in that city.
http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2015/04/texas-senate-committee-votes-to-approve-ban-on-redlight-cameras.html/
587696066411134976
587694974805782530
http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/files/2015/04/REDLIGHTCAMERA.jpg (http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/files/2015/04/REDLIGHTCAMERA.jpg)
AUSTIN – Red-light cameras in Dallas and many other North Texas cities would be banned under legislation approved Monday by the Senate Transportation Committee.
The bill by Sen. Bob Hall, R-Canton (http://www.capitol.state.tx.us/BillLookup/History.aspx?LegSess=84R&Bill=SB714), would explicitly outlaw future camera programs. And it would eventually stop cities that already have such cameras from using them, though some worried that it might allow cities to keep their red-light cameras for years longer.
The perennial debate over red-light cameras centers on a feature beloved by law enforcement and despised by many in the public.
A cavalcade of police officials – from Denton, Grand Prairie, Plano and elsewhere – said such cameras change driver behavior and reduce crashes. But others questioned the cameras’ actual safety impact and argued that they are just municipal revenue generators.
And though Hall and others acknowledged the law enforcement view, the committee voted 5-0 to send the bill to the full Senate.
“The public has expressed great opposition to the growing practice of unmanned, automatic-controlled traffic cameras,” Hall said.
Red-light cameras – and the accompanying $75 fines – have been controversial since their start in Texas in the early 2000s.
Some object to the idea being cited, albeit for a civil ticket, when a police officer isn’t there to witness the violation. Others don’t like that cities like Dallas, due to a contract quirk, can still report unpaid fines to a credit bureau.
Many charge that the cameras are an invasion of privacy. Still others are stunned to find out that only a small amount of the state’s cut (http://www.lbb.state.tx.us/Documents/Publications/Issue_Briefs/275_Red_Light_Cameras.pdf) of the fines has reached its intended destination: regional trauma centers.
And some Texas cities – Arlington could be next – have seen their residents vote to outlaw the cameras.
They’ve been “landslide victories of people saying, ‘Remove these cameras from our streets,” said Kelly Canon, an Arlington resident who’s helped push a May ballot proposition to ban the cameras in that city.
http://trailblazersblog.dallasnews.com/2015/04/texas-senate-committee-votes-to-approve-ban-on-redlight-cameras.html/