Video: How Do Red Light Cameras Work?
As Clearwater leaders determine if and who will install and run red light cameras, American Traffic Solutions, the company that runs Gulfport's three red light cameras, launched a "How it Works" video campaign about the system.
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Clearwater soon could be another city with a red light camera district.
Bidding for companies to install and run the controversial traffic enforcement devices ended last month. If city leaders decide to move forward, red light cameras would be placed at two intersections in the city.
If the cameras are installed they will be along Belcher Road at Sunset Point Road and at Gulf to Bay Blvd.
One company that runs red light cameras is American Traffic Solutions. The company operates the cameras and systems from Arizona.
American Traffic Solutions runs cameras for the Gulfport Police Department. They pay $4,500 each month for each camera at three locations. The total comes to $13,500 total a month.
For more information on how the cameras and systems work, check out the step-by-step video released Monday from American Traffic Solutions. Click on this link to see download and watch the video.
The video is being released as part of National Safety Month. The "How it Works" video tries to break down the technology into simple terms, according to the company press release.
"As the country's leader in road safety technology, ATS is committed to working to raise awareness and educate the public about how red-light safety cameras work," said James Tuton, president of the traffic camera company.
According to the Insurance Institute of Highway Safety, red-light running is the leading cause of urban crashes.
St Pete Driver
9:42 pm on Monday, June 13, 2011
If you actually read all of the studies on red light cameras(there are dozens of them out there, many more than the 2 or 3 that advocates mention) you will see that red light cameras lead to a significant increase in crashes and injuries. If you don't believe me, go ahead and read all of the studies for yourself:
http://www.stpetecameras.org/home/rlc-studies
If they were truly interested in improving safety, they would increase the yellow signal time by one additional second. Doing this has proven in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Georgia, Texas, New Mexico and California to be more effective at preventing red light running than red light cameras are, but nobody makes money that way.
diana hartman
12:31 am on Tuesday, June 14, 2011
I am not a fan of red light cameras either. I believe they lead to more rear end collisions because you don’t know how long the light was yellow-- or if the person driving in front of you is going to stop or go through the yellow light. However it is a good revenue source for towns. I am sure that there is the capability so that when a traffic light goes from yellow to red, there can be a delay so that all lanes at an intersection have a red light for several seconds of duration. It would result in fewer accidents and save lives---plus money would be saved by not having to pay the company that runs the red light cameras.