RED LIGHT CAMERAS

68jk09 · Nov 25, 2010

This is a post i made on another site in a thread regarding the proliferation of red light cameras in NYC .....none of this may be germain to the areas where other posters on here reside..... but on the other hand..... some may have some info how this problem is addressed in their respective areas...... i am discussing NYC who has had then for awhile but has tremendously increased the # s ....but...if you also have occasion to travel to Long Island.... BEWARE..... because recently it has been started there.......................Here is my post........ The more of these cameras installed in the city ...the more responses are delayed once regular users of a particular roadway are aware of locations .... they are slowing down/ preparing to stop....(according to Dept. Of Transportation this has resulted in an increase in rear end accidents at these locations but they dont consider this a problem) what has happened in many intersections is that if those aware of the cameras are the front car at a light & a responding Rig is 5 car lengths back they wont move at all for fear of getting a summons.....so if it s a divided road with a curb or mall you can not go into the opposite lane & then you sit there until the light changes & then you repeat this again in a few blocks.......starting at least 5 years ago (when there were fewer cameras) i posed A question at several community board meetings that i was forced to attend while on duty (rather go to Fires).....reps from DOT, Parking Enforcement , Boro Pres Office etc , etc who were in attendance never ever came back with an answer .... the answer i wanted was both for the benefit of the Public as well as for myself & other BROTHERS who drive our own vehicles in the city regularly (i live in the city..... but every BROTHER who is FDNY ..city resident or not ... all drive into the city to go to work)......it goes like this.....QUESTION---If a camera photographs 1 or more vehicles proceeding through a red light will the camera also record the Emergency vehicle that pushed them through therefore preventing a summons being sent (the way a fair system would work) or if nothing else if the recipient fights the summons will they have access to the followup Emergency vehicles photo w/time stamp to justify their move ?......i always felt this was an important question ......the ANSWER i received from those in a position to be "in the know" was..... "NOTHING" ......anybody on here ever thought about this or have a better idea as to who to ask ? (and not be blown off)......i myself would eat the $50.00 before i disregarded an Emergency vehicles timely response..... but there should be an answer to this.

raybrag · Nov 25, 2010

I don't think you ever will get an answer. Why? The primary purpose of these contraptions is to MAKE MONEY, and the city fathers don't want to ever hear about the slightest issue with that concept, no matter where they are. The Virginia Legislature just recently authorized cities in the state to install these things, and several cities in Hampton Roads (Newport News & Virginia Beach, to name 2) now have them. Sure, there are fewer red light runners, but the incidence of rear end collisions has skyrocketed . . . leading to more income for the city (ever hear of a citation for following too closely?). So the ka-ching factor is the overriding concern. How about you, Deano (vbcapt) . . . have you had a problem with what Chief jk is talking about over in V-Beach land?

vbcapt · Nov 25, 2010

Nothing yet in relation to what he posted. Haven't heard much about them at all, only the back & forth debates when they were getting ready to be implemented

fdce54 · Nov 25, 2010

To echo RayBrag, they are cash cows for NYC. Now Yonkers is installing them in high traffic areas along Central Park Ave and So. Broadway. Easy money. I know of one instance where a person got the summons in the mail and the photo showed a NYC police officer holding the persons vehicle up so a work vehicle could manuver and his case had to go before a judge before it was dismissed.

memory master · Nov 25, 2010

Chief Jack, I think the best place to try this theory would be at the corner of Grand Ave. & Queens Blvd. That corner is good for about 25 times a day between 287/136 and the 46 as well as all the EMS busses going through that mad intersection. It would be interesting at the least :

johnd248 · Nov 25, 2010

A friend and I were in NYC for a Fire Bell Club meeting and he had a lovely picture taken of his car on Third Avenue in the 50s. It was not cheap.

baileyjeff · Nov 26, 2010

About 5 years ago I was travelling on Victory Blvd, Engine 166 came up full lights and sirens, I pulled over and yes the red light camera flashed. Got a ticket, got a letter from Engine 166 took it court and still lost. Reason the judge told me was I had no business going through a red light even for an emergency vehicle.

68jk09 · Nov 26, 2010

memory master ....the only red light camera at Grand Av & Q.B. is for traffic going West on Q.B.........the whole intersections lights can be preempted from the F.H. making all red w/the exception of Northbound from Grand to facilitate Units going left from the F.H. towards Corona & Jackson Heights (the majority of the responses are left out of the F.H. & across or onto Q.B.)...the light directly in front of the F.H. also can be pre-empted stopping traffic both ways on Grand as well as the cars coming onto Grand from Seabury St. (opposite the F.H.)... many years ago when the Bn s runs were thru the roof there was no traffic control device..... so crossing eleven lanes of Queens Blvd. against the light was like entering a shooting gallery.

grumpy grizzly · Nov 26, 2010

Any time the city/town gets money, well you ain't gonna win. On the good side the village of Schamburg (Il) removed a red light camera after 99% of all tickets were for failure to come to a complete stop on a right turn. The light was near a very large mall and people said they would not go near it anymore. I received a similar ticket in a near western Chicago suburb and at the hearing I told the mayor I would never, ever, never shop in his suburb. Just a little shot in the big war!! ;D

memory master · Nov 26, 2010

Jack, "been there and done that" crossing that shooting gallery of eleven lanes on QB years ago. It was better than "bumper cars" at Astro-Land, wouldn't you agree?

68jk09 · Nov 26, 2010

A few times crossing it i wished i was at Astro land instead of in a Suburban.

svd385 · Nov 27, 2010

baileyjeff said:
About 5 years ago I was travelling on Victory Blvd, Engine 166 came up full lights and sirens, I pulled over and yes the red light camera flashed. Got a ticket, got a letter from Engine 166 took it court and still lost. Reason the judge told me was I had no business going through a red light even for an emergency vehicle.

So according to this judge your damned either way. If you block traffic you can be ticketed for failure to yield right of way to an emergency vehicle, yet if you trigger a camera while yileding you get a ticket for the red light. Seems like a lose / lose situation ??? ??? ???

Capnkeys · Nov 27, 2010

svd385 said:
So according to this judge your damned either way. If you block traffic you can be ticketed for failure to yield right of way to an emergency vehicle, yet if you trigger a camera while yileding you get a ticket for the red light. Seems like a lose / lose situation ??? ??? ???

It's a lose/win situation Brother. You lose, the City win$.