Friday, April 23, 2010
Anaheim will BAN RED LIGHT Cameras
Anaheim will place an intiative on the ballot to Ban Red Light cmaeras. Arizona should follow.
Saturday, February 20, 2010
Arizona speed cameras incite a mini revolt
From todays LA Times
A masked man, a citizens group, a judge and other motorists are behind the fight against photo enforcement.
... since the Grand Canyon State began enforcing speed limits with roadside cameras, motorists are raging against the machines: They have blocked out the lenses with Post-it notes or Silly String. During the Christmas holidays, they covered the cameras with boxes, complete with wrapping paper.
One dissenting citizen went after a camera with a pick ax.
Arizona is the only state to implement "photo enforcement," as it's known, on major highways and is one of 12 states and 52 communities, plus the District of Columbia, with speed cameras, according to the nonprofit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
In California, speed cameras are illegal, but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a program to add speed enforcement capabilities to 500 red-light cameras to generate $338 million for the 2010-11 budget. The proposal is unlikely to be a part of the Legislature's upcoming budget recommendations.
California State Assembly Budget Committee Chairwoman Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) has described the proposal as "silly."
"It's using big-brother tactics to balance the state budget," she said. "It's outlandish."
That's certainly been the reaction in Arizona, where the cameras have incited a mini revolt.
Initially, the cameras were thought of as a revenue generator, expected to bring in more than $90 million in the first fiscal year of operation.
But from October 2008, when the program began, to October 2009, the cameras generated about $19 million for the state's cash-strapped general fund, according to a report on photo radar released by the Arizona Office of the Auditor General last month.
Among the dissenters fighting photo enforcement are members of a citizens group, the Arizona Citizens Against Photo Radar.
In Maricopa County -- where 92% of Arizona's violations occur -- volunteers have been on the streets for about a year, gathering signatures for a 2010 ballot initiative to remove the cameras. On a December afternoon, Shawn Dow, chairman of the group, and two volunteers gathered signatures at an Arizona State University basketball game.
A masked man, a citizens group, a judge and other motorists are behind the fight against photo enforcement.
... since the Grand Canyon State began enforcing speed limits with roadside cameras, motorists are raging against the machines: They have blocked out the lenses with Post-it notes or Silly String. During the Christmas holidays, they covered the cameras with boxes, complete with wrapping paper.
One dissenting citizen went after a camera with a pick ax.
Arizona is the only state to implement "photo enforcement," as it's known, on major highways and is one of 12 states and 52 communities, plus the District of Columbia, with speed cameras, according to the nonprofit Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
In California, speed cameras are illegal, but Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger proposed a program to add speed enforcement capabilities to 500 red-light cameras to generate $338 million for the 2010-11 budget. The proposal is unlikely to be a part of the Legislature's upcoming budget recommendations.
California State Assembly Budget Committee Chairwoman Noreen Evans (D-Santa Rosa) has described the proposal as "silly."
"It's using big-brother tactics to balance the state budget," she said. "It's outlandish."
That's certainly been the reaction in Arizona, where the cameras have incited a mini revolt.
Initially, the cameras were thought of as a revenue generator, expected to bring in more than $90 million in the first fiscal year of operation.
But from October 2008, when the program began, to October 2009, the cameras generated about $19 million for the state's cash-strapped general fund, according to a report on photo radar released by the Arizona Office of the Auditor General last month.
Among the dissenters fighting photo enforcement are members of a citizens group, the Arizona Citizens Against Photo Radar.
In Maricopa County -- where 92% of Arizona's violations occur -- volunteers have been on the streets for about a year, gathering signatures for a 2010 ballot initiative to remove the cameras. On a December afternoon, Shawn Dow, chairman of the group, and two volunteers gathered signatures at an Arizona State University basketball game.
Friday, February 5, 2010
California Rejects Speed Cameras
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger's plan to install cameras that automatically ticket speeding drivers hit a roadblock Wednesday.
Several members of the Senate budget committee expressed serious concerns about the idea ...
The proposal would raise nearly $400 million, including $297 million for the state's general fund to help reduce a $19.9 billion deficit. The plan would provide $41 million for court security and $59.6 million for cities and counties.
But a variety of groups testified against the idea, from the Teamsters union to the Automobile Club of Southern California. Teamsters lobbyist Barry Broad warned that cities could manipulate the length of traffic light sequences to encourage more speeding drivers – and more revenue.
Sen. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, called it a "terrible idea." He said it was being driven by a desire to raise money, when it should be considered only if it enhances safety.
"This is a cynical attempt to generate revenue without dealing with the policy," he said.
Sen. Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar, said he was concerned that cameras could lead to more rear-end accidents.
Sacramento Bee February 4, 2010
http://www.sacbee.com/politics/story/2511841.html
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/story/2511740.html
Several members of the Senate budget committee expressed serious concerns about the idea ...
The proposal would raise nearly $400 million, including $297 million for the state's general fund to help reduce a $19.9 billion deficit. The plan would provide $41 million for court security and $59.6 million for cities and counties.
But a variety of groups testified against the idea, from the Teamsters union to the Automobile Club of Southern California. Teamsters lobbyist Barry Broad warned that cities could manipulate the length of traffic light sequences to encourage more speeding drivers – and more revenue.
Sen. Alan Lowenthal, D-Long Beach, chairman of the Senate Transportation Committee, called it a "terrible idea." He said it was being driven by a desire to raise money, when it should be considered only if it enhances safety.
"This is a cynical attempt to generate revenue without dealing with the policy," he said.
Sen. Bob Huff, R-Diamond Bar, said he was concerned that cameras could lead to more rear-end accidents.
Sacramento Bee February 4, 2010
http://www.sacbee.com/politics/story/2511841.html
http://www.sacbee.com/opinion/story/2511740.html
Friday, January 29, 2010
Wake-up Cal-i-Forn-i-a!
Governor Arnold is now proposing the dumbest solution in history for the California budget problem - SPEED CAMERAS! SPEED CAMERAS make the Speed camera contractor rich and infuriate drivers. If he wanted to do something he should work on stopping the traffic congestion and promote synchronization of red lights to cut down on green house gases but that would not generate money for the state to spend...
Saturday, January 2, 2010
New Year Could Bring End to Speed Cameras
Amanda L. Myers, The Associated Press
December 30, 2009 - 9:15PM , updated: December 31, 2009 - 2:56PM
More than a year after Arizona became the first state in the country to deploy dozens of speed cameras on highways statewide, threats to the groundbreaking program abound.
Profits are far below expectations, a citizen effort to ban the cameras continues to gain steam, the governor has said she does not like the program, and more and more drivers getting tickets in the mail are ignoring them after hearing from fellow speeders that there are often no consequences to that choice.
"I see all the cameras in Arizona completely coming down (in 2010)," said Shawn Dow, chairman of Arizona Citizens Against Photo Radar, which is trying to get a voter initiative banning the cameras on the November ballot. "The citizens of Arizona took away the cash cow of Arizona by refusing to pay."
The Arizona Department of Public Safety introduced the cameras in September 2008 and slowly added more until all 76 were up and running by January. Supporters say the cameras slow down drivers and reduce accidents, while opponents argue that they are intrusive and are more about making money than safety.
More than 300 U.S. communities in 25 states use cameras similar to Arizona's, including New York, Atlanta, Baltimore, Chicago, Denver, Houston, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco, Seattle and Washington, D.C. But the backlash seems to be particularly intense in Arizona.
Some people have shown their distaste with the cameras by covering them with boxes, sticky notes and Silly String. In a few locally infamous cases, one man took a pickax to a camera and another purposefully triggered the cameras dozens of times while wearing a monkey mask.
DPS Lt. Jeff King, photo enforcement district commander, said his agency just wants drivers to go the speed limit and doesn't understand all the backlash.
"Instead of spending so much time focusing on getting rid of cameras, why don't they focus on the real problem, the root problem, which is getting people to drive the speed limit?" he said. "If everyone was to drive the speed limit, the cameras would never flash."
More than 700,000 tickets were given out to drivers going 11 mph or more over the speed limit by the cameras between September 2008 and September this year, the most recent data available, according to DPS.
If the mandated $181.50 in fines and surcharges were collected on all those tickets, that would total more than $127 million. But they had generated just $36.8 million through September, King said.
Some of the people who got those tickets are contesting them in court and could end up having to pay the fine, but many of them have gone unpaid because drivers know they have a good shot at getting away with ignoring them.
When drivers get tickets, they have four options — pay without question, say they weren't driving and send in their driver's license photo as proof, request a court date and fight the ticket, or simply ignore the ticket because law enforcement can't prove they received it. The ticket becomes invalid if a violator who ignores it isn't served in person within three months.
It's nearly impossible to say how many people have ignored their tickets because courts don't track the figure. The number has been estimated to be as high as 70 percent.
Whatever the figure, overtaxed process servers can't get to most of those people, and many of the citations go unpaid.
That's part of the reason the speed cameras haven't made as much money as expected. While certain to increase, that $36.8 million in revenue through September will still fall far below the $120 million a year that former Gov. Janet Napolitano hoped to put in the state's coffers when she ordered DPS to develop the program in early 2007.
Camera operator Redflex may not even be breaking even. It cost the company $16 million to install the cameras, and they got $4.6 million back between September 2008 and June, King said.
In a statement to shareholders, Redflex executives said that they expected to make even less money on the program in the first half of the 2010 financial year than the same time period last year, estimating that the net profit before tax would be about $4 million. The executives partially cited people who aren't paying their tickets for the low revenue.
Reflex spokeswoman Shoba Vaitheeswaran said the company hopes to improve revenues by streamlining the process by which violators get their tickets, although she did not get into specifics, and added that a public-awareness campaign is a possibility.
"I should point out that Redflex is in this for the long haul," she said. "This is a massive, first-of-its-kind deployment which requires a large capital outlay of equipment, backend technology, etcetera ... We feel it's here to stay."
She said the company is confident that as the process is refined, more drivers will pay their tickets.
As for state revenues, King said Arizona's general fund got nearly $20 million from the speed cameras through September.
Paul Senseman, a spokesman for Republican Gov. Jan Brewer, said while a far cry from what the previous administration had anticipated getting, "$20 million is a lot of money for anybody."
Brewer hasn't said what she would do with legislation stopping the program, which could be proposed in 2010, but has said she doesn't like the intrusiveness of the cameras.
"She believes the evidence is clear from the beginning that it was created more as a revenue source," Senseman said.
http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/148958
Right Turn Violations
We just spent Christmas in Phoenix! Speed is not the problem. Everyone in town seems to believe that you can turn right on a red without STOPPING! Come on, this is serious, I almost sent a couple of you on to the happy hunting ground of your ancestors. LOOK! If the car coming through the green is traveling at the speed limit of 35, 45, 50 and you are going less than 5, you cannot get around the corner fast enough to save yourself. Get over it! Stop and when you have a clear path, than you can go. With all of the time that the police have to not enforce speed violations, they should have time to stop drivers running red lights when turning right.
Attention REDFLEX the guy in the rental car flipping you off was me. There should be several pictures. In every case, I was braking to avoid cars in front of me stopping to avoid your cameras.
Attention REDFLEX the guy in the rental car flipping you off was me. There should be several pictures. In every case, I was braking to avoid cars in front of me stopping to avoid your cameras.
Sunday, November 1, 2009
Ohio Supreme Court Clears Anti-Speed Camera Referendum for Vote
Chillicothe, Ohio residents will retain the right to vote out speed cameras on November 3, thanks to a Ohio Supreme Court ruling yesterday. Fearing the public would shut down his signature program, Chillicothe Mayor Joseph Sulzer had asked the high court for an emergency injunction blocking the citizen-led initiative. Sulzer argued that this step was needed because the proposed initiative was unconstitutional and the city was denied a fair chance to argue against it before the Ross County Board of Elections (view Sulzer’s court filing). The supreme court justices unanimously rejected his complaint.
By The Newspaper
October 22, 2009
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/ohio-supreme-court-clears-anti-speed-camera-referendum-for-vote/
By The Newspaper
October 22, 2009
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/ohio-supreme-court-clears-anti-speed-camera-referendum-for-vote/
Traffic cameras earn D.C. $36.4M in '09 from speeders
By: Scott McCabe
Examiner Staff Writer
October 27, 2009 The District has raked in at least $36.4 million from nearly a half-million drivers in fiscal 2009 because of traffic cameras, almost double the amount two years ago, according to a study released Monday.
D.C. police collected $29.9 million from speed camera fines and $6.5 million from red-light cameras tickets in the first 11 months of the last budget year, according to a study by AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The report did not include amounts for the final month because the District was still counting the money at the time the study was conducted.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/crime/Traffic-cameras-earn-D_C_-_36_4M-in-_09-from-speeders-8441583-66195607.html
Examiner Staff Writer
October 27, 2009 The District has raked in at least $36.4 million from nearly a half-million drivers in fiscal 2009 because of traffic cameras, almost double the amount two years ago, according to a study released Monday.
D.C. police collected $29.9 million from speed camera fines and $6.5 million from red-light cameras tickets in the first 11 months of the last budget year, according to a study by AAA Mid-Atlantic.
The report did not include amounts for the final month because the District was still counting the money at the time the study was conducted.
http://www.washingtonexaminer.com/local/crime/Traffic-cameras-earn-D_C_-_36_4M-in-_09-from-speeders-8441583-66195607.html
Sunday, October 18, 2009
Arizona: Witnesses Blame Accident on Speed Camera
The panicked reaction that some drivers have to the sight of a speed camera may in fact be a significant cause of accidents. The group CameraFraud.com yesterday released an Arizona Department of Public Safety (DPS) accident report that describes a July 25 incident in which a gray Chevy Camaro collided with a red 1994 Toyota 4Runner SUV on Interstate 17 in Yavapai County, sending two people to the hospital. Although DPS maintains that it hired an Australian company, Redflex Traffic Systems, to operate speed cameras to improve safety, the department’s own report tells a far different story. “All the witnesses reported seeing the gray passenger car lose control of the vehicle as it passed the photo radar van, and was apparently trying to slow down for the photo radar van,” the police report explained.
Scottsdale resident Tracy O. was about 500 feet from the accident. She told the police that, “The Camaro [was] trying to slow down because of speed camera.”
Scottsdale resident Helene S. told police that, “I saw the Camaro swerve out of control and hit into the red SUV. It happened after the Camaro passed a speed camera.”
Sedona resident Allison S. was about 150 feet away. “[While] driving northbound in rain right near photo radar enforcement vehicle, [we] saw [the] car fishtail ahead of us, spin and hit red SUV which then also spun off the road.”
Although no video of the Arizona incident has been released, the same panic-braking reaction was captured on tape by police in Norfolk, England. The government-owned BBC news service inadvertently aired the video clips from two such incidents last year (see below). Shortly after the news program aired, the BBC removed all copies of the footage from its website. The Norfolk Speed Camera Partnership and the UK Information Commissioner cited “technical difficulties” in refusing to release the full videos of each crash.
By The Newspaper
October 9, 2009
Scottsdale resident Tracy O. was about 500 feet from the accident. She told the police that, “The Camaro [was] trying to slow down because of speed camera.”
Scottsdale resident Helene S. told police that, “I saw the Camaro swerve out of control and hit into the red SUV. It happened after the Camaro passed a speed camera.”
Sedona resident Allison S. was about 150 feet away. “[While] driving northbound in rain right near photo radar enforcement vehicle, [we] saw [the] car fishtail ahead of us, spin and hit red SUV which then also spun off the road.”
Although no video of the Arizona incident has been released, the same panic-braking reaction was captured on tape by police in Norfolk, England. The government-owned BBC news service inadvertently aired the video clips from two such incidents last year (see below). Shortly after the news program aired, the BBC removed all copies of the footage from its website. The Norfolk Speed Camera Partnership and the UK Information Commissioner cited “technical difficulties” in refusing to release the full videos of each crash.
By The Newspaper
October 9, 2009
Maryland Adopts Speed Cameras
The use of automated cameras that give speeders the willies -- and the occasional ticket -- becomes legal throughout Maryland on Thursday, October 1, 2009.
Washington Post
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Saturday, October 10, 2009
Outrage - Fee for Paying a Camera Fine
Please join the group leading the cause. This is an outrage! You already get a fine and now they want you to pay a fee for you sending them the money.
Announcing a new Meetup for CameraFRAUD.com!
What: ESTABLISH A PHOTO RADAR FEE ---NOT---
When: November 4, 2009 9:00 AM
Where:Superior Court Building205 W. Jefferson St. Phoenix, AZ 85003
http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/News/059026-2009-10-06-maricopa-co-board-of-supervisors-sets-public-hearing-11-4.htm
SETTING OF HEARINGS~All hearings will be held at 9:00 am, 205 W. Jefferson, Phoenix, unless otherwise noted~Justice Courts79.
ESTABLISH A PHOTO RADAR FEE Pursuant to A.R.S. §11-251.08, set a public hearing for November 4, 2009 to solicitcomments and consider the adoption of Photo Radar Fee of $20.00 per defendant to beginDecember 1, 2009. The proposed photo radar fee will be assessed against each individualcharged with a civil traffic violation through utilization of photo radar.A.R.S.§11-251.08 authorizes county boards of supervisors to adopt fees for any specificservice the county provides to the public as long as that fee is attributable to and defrays theexpense of the service for which the fee is assessed and the fee does not exceed the actualcost of that service. The Justice Courts estimate the average cost to process each photoradar case to be $21.60. (C-24-10-001-M-00)Learn more here:http://www.meetup.com/camerafraud/calendar/11568981/
This message was sent by Andrea Garcia (agirlsdirt@gmail.com) from CameraFRAUD.com.
Announcing a new Meetup for CameraFRAUD.com!
What: ESTABLISH A PHOTO RADAR FEE ---NOT---
When: November 4, 2009 9:00 AM
Where:Superior Court Building205 W. Jefferson St. Phoenix, AZ 85003
http://www.freedomsphoenix.com/News/059026-2009-10-06-maricopa-co-board-of-supervisors-sets-public-hearing-11-4.htm
SETTING OF HEARINGS~All hearings will be held at 9:00 am, 205 W. Jefferson, Phoenix, unless otherwise noted~Justice Courts79.
ESTABLISH A PHOTO RADAR FEE Pursuant to A.R.S. §11-251.08, set a public hearing for November 4, 2009 to solicitcomments and consider the adoption of Photo Radar Fee of $20.00 per defendant to beginDecember 1, 2009. The proposed photo radar fee will be assessed against each individualcharged with a civil traffic violation through utilization of photo radar.A.R.S.§11-251.08 authorizes county boards of supervisors to adopt fees for any specificservice the county provides to the public as long as that fee is attributable to and defrays theexpense of the service for which the fee is assessed and the fee does not exceed the actualcost of that service. The Justice Courts estimate the average cost to process each photoradar case to be $21.60. (C-24-10-001-M-00)Learn more here:http://www.meetup.com/camerafraud/calendar/11568981/
This message was sent by Andrea Garcia (agirlsdirt@gmail.com) from CameraFRAUD.com.
We Have Seen the Future
This is the camera array from the Predator Reaper. It can clearly see for miles.Just wait until you see a set of these following you home, checking your speed, your cell phone use, your distraction quotient and any other thing the AZ Legislature can think of to earn funds. I have an idea for all governments STOP SPENDING SO MUCH MONEY!
Sunday, September 27, 2009
Speed Cameras Attacked in Italy, Germany, Kuwait, Poland
Speed cameras smashed, traffic cameras shot, a speed trap hiding spot is destroyed in Italy, Germany, Kuwait and Poland.
http://www.thenewspaper.com/news/29/2912.asp
Lakewood, Wa council ends speed-camera vans
In two to three weeks, the camera vans that roam Lakewood school zones to nab speeders will be gone.
Councilman Finnigan said the intent of the original contract with Redflex was to reduce the speed of vehicles. Officials say there hasn’t been a serious pedestrian-vehicle accident in a school zone in Lakewood’s 13-year history.
The amendment to install fixed cameras is a “disproportionate reaction, or solution, to a problem we don’t have,” Finnigan said.
The News Tribune
Brent Champaco
9/23/2009
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/education/story/889590.html
Councilman Finnigan said the intent of the original contract with Redflex was to reduce the speed of vehicles. Officials say there hasn’t been a serious pedestrian-vehicle accident in a school zone in Lakewood’s 13-year history.
The amendment to install fixed cameras is a “disproportionate reaction, or solution, to a problem we don’t have,” Finnigan said.
The News Tribune
Brent Champaco
9/23/2009
http://www.thenewstribune.com/news/education/story/889590.html
Thursday, September 24, 2009
CameraFraud.com
If you want to get involved in stopping this expanding miscarriage of justice join a group at Camerafraud.com.
Wednesday, September 23, 2009
Mobile speed cameras target casino, freeway
Not sure how I missed this one but follow this link to the Arizona Republic's story. According to the Republic the Mobile Camera between Chandler and Maricopa is working so well that Court hours are going to have to be extended.
www.azcentral.com/community/chanadler/articles/2008/07/17/20080717cr-speeders0717.html
by Edythe Jensen - Jul. 17, 2008 09:30 AM
The Arizona Republic
www.azcentral.com/community/chanadler/articles/2008/07/17/20080717cr-speeders0717.html
by Edythe Jensen - Jul. 17, 2008 09:30 AM
The Arizona Republic
Mobile speed cameras to suprise chatty motorists with penalties
Nowadays, we're lucky to be able to so much as breathe air while driving without getting penalized. As of late, motorists in South Yorkshire have quite the incentive to keep their phone conversations under wraps while in transit. Mobile speed cameras, traditionally used to catch speeders, will be used by police to catch unsuspecting chit-chatters in the act, who would later receive an unexpected notice showing 3 points on their license and a demand for £60, which was recently, and perhaps not-so-coincidentally, increased from £30. "If officers using mobile cameras see someone using a hand-held phone, whether with their own eyes or through the lens of their camera, then they are fair game." There's been no word on plans for similar implementation within the automated camera system, but "that is not to say that we can't change the policy," states Meredydd Hughes, the head of roads policing for the Association of Chief Constables. Drivers may soon feel compelled to throw down some cash for a headset, although there's even been speculation on the perils of hands-free yapping -- looks like a good tint-job's the last resort... and how about some spinners while you're at it?
This is 1984 http://www.engadget.com/2007/02/28/mobile-speed-cameras-to-suprise-chatty-motorists-with-penalties/
Friday, September 18, 2009
National Motorists Association: Worst Labor Day Speed Traps
The National Motorists Association (NMA) released its list of the top seven locations to avoid over the Labor Day holiday. This year, the drivers’ rights group highlighted areas where heightened use of automated ticketing machines threaten those who are just passing through.
Phoenix and Scottsdale, ArizonaState lawmakers desperate to raise money to solve an out-of-control deficit turned to photo radar to fill a $165 million gap. Dozens of fully automated Australian mobile speed camera vans, in addition to fixed camera units, were added to the freeways in addition to existing cameras on city streets. This weekend, however, the state reacted to the NMA warning and cut speed van deployments to a handful, according to the group CameraFraud.com.
By The Newspaper September 7, 2009 see the rest including Los Angeles at
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/national-motorists-association-worst-labor-day-speed-traps/
Phoenix and Scottsdale, ArizonaState lawmakers desperate to raise money to solve an out-of-control deficit turned to photo radar to fill a $165 million gap. Dozens of fully automated Australian mobile speed camera vans, in addition to fixed camera units, were added to the freeways in addition to existing cameras on city streets. This weekend, however, the state reacted to the NMA warning and cut speed van deployments to a handful, according to the group CameraFraud.com.
By The Newspaper September 7, 2009 see the rest including Los Angeles at
http://www.thetruthaboutcars.com/national-motorists-association-worst-labor-day-speed-traps/
Tuesday, September 8, 2009
You have to check out the site Radartest.com. The two articles that caught my eye "Are Speed Cameras Effective?" http://radartest.com/article.asp?articleid=100619 and "The Majority Favors Speed Cameras" http://radartest.com/SpeedcamPoll.asp. Craig Peterson tested the BS being put out by the revenuers and found them full of hot air.
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