Major Chicago study finds red light cameras not safer, cause more rear-end injuries

[aGameOfThrones]

On Friday, the Chicago Tribune released the results of a study it commissioned on injury crashes and red light cameras, revealing that while right angle crash incidents have been reduced, rear-end crashes that resulted in injuries went up 22 percent. The results of the study throw cold water on the booster efforts of Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration and raise questions about the use of red light cameras as a whole.

Chicago is the home of the nation's largest red light camera program and encompasses 350 cameras at a variety of the city's intersections. The red light camera program has been accused of mismanagement and embroiled the mayor's office in a $2 million bribery scandal. But recently, administrators trotted out a seemingly redeeming statistic: that the introduction of the cameras had created a 47 percent reduction in the rate of right angle, or “T-bone,” injury crashes.

The Chicago Tribune in response commissioned a scientific study by two well-regarded transportation researchers, who found that the statistics promoted by the mayor's office were misleading. According to the Tribune, the authors of the study found a statistically significant, but still smaller, reduction in angle and turning injury crashes by 15 percent, as well as “a statistically significant increase of 22 percent in rear-end injury collisions.” Overall, there was “a non-significant increase of 5 percent in the total number of injury crashes” that happened at intersections with red light cameras when comparing the injury crashes that occurred there before and after the cameras were present.

On a more granular level, the researchers found that there were no safety benefits from cameras that are installed at intersections where there have already been few crashes with injuries, and occasionally, there was evidence that red light cameras actually increased injury crashes at such intersections. "When intersections experiencing fewer than 4 injury crashes per year are considered, there is a significant increase in all crashes by 19 percent after the installation of RLCs," the Tribune study found.

The Tribune noted that the red light camera program has raised more than $500 million off of the $100 tickets since 2002. "That program needs to be stopped. It needs to be frozen to give us time to re-evaluate everything," Chicago Alderman Anthony Beale, 9th, chairman of the council Transportation Committee, told the Tribune. "This is just more proof that this entire program is strictly to generate revenue and always has been."

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/2...-end-injuries/

[Zippyjuan]

But fewer side crashes. Overall, accidents were about the same.

Overall, there was “a non-significant increase of 5 percent in the total number of injury crashes” that happened at intersections with red light cameras when comparing the injury crashes that occurred there before and after the cameras were present.

On a more granular level, the researchers found that there were no safety benefits from cameras that are installed at intersections where there have already been few crashes with injuries, and occasionally, there was evidence that red light cameras actually increased injury crashes at such intersections.

They have been getting rid of them here in San Diego. http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/...s-safety-cost/

Nationwide, the number of cities using the cameras has decreased from a peak of 540 in 2012 to 508 this year, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, a nonprofit research organization funded by the auto insurance industry.

[Henry Rogue]

Didn’t need a study to tell me that.

[kcchiefs6465]

Didn’t need a study to tell me that.

We have the speed and red light camera combination out here.

Unsurprisingly the lights are timed not at the posted speed.

If it is a yellow light and they are close to the intersection (as is often the case), they either have the option of speeding up ten miles per hour to make the light (and getting a ticket) or slamming on their brakes decelerating from 45 MPH to 0 in the course of 120 or so feet.

It is quite clear public safety isn't a motivation with regards to these red light cameras/photo radar machines.

[specsaregood]

./

[FindLiberty]

Please! They're REVENUE Cameras, not Red Light Cameras.

They all need to go to the electronics recycling (garbage dump), ASAP.
And all that yellow light timing needs to be reset for safety, if it's not
too much trouble.

Who signed up for those things anyhow? Possibly the same geniuses who sold
Chicago's parking meters and that whole toll way (it connects to Indiana?
Both were sold to some outfit ...in Spain?) in order to raise some fast cash
needed temporarily hide looming financial bankruptcy and inevitable collapse.

Am I only dreaming about this slow-motion train wreck horror that's before us,
or is this nightmare really happening?

[phill4paul]

Sounds like there needs to be some major personal injury lawsuits with very sympathetic juries.

[Anti Federalist]

But fewer side crashes. Overall, accidents were about the same.

Yup.

Nothing much changed.

Oh, except that half a billion dollar soaking that the people took.

But what's a half a billion and God knows how many points, insurance fees and lost licenses among friends, right, Zip?

[TruckinMike]

Install lights like in mexico. Have the green light flash just before turning yellow. The flashing provides the needed information in determining whether you should break or accelerate through.

"Below is a description of how the traffic lights in Mexico operate, we advise that you take extra precaution when approaching traffic lights in Ciudad Obregon to avoid putting yourself in any unnecessary danger:

Red light: Stop.
Green Light: Go, if the road is clear of traffic. Be careful if you intend to turn left or right and give way to pedestrians who are crossing.
Green arrow: Go, if the way is clear, but only in the direction shown by the arrow. You may proceed in the direction of the green arrow even if the light for other directions is red.
Flashing Green Light: to indicate that the Amber light (Caution phase) is about to engage.
Amber Light: (caution Phase) to indicate that the lights are going to turn Red (stop)."