Traffic ticket cameras

[Skink]

Having just been mailed a ticket I googled locations of these ticket cameras. Turns out in this city there are 4 all close together. I will
avoid this area completely now. So economically what they
collected on the ticket won't come close to future lost sales taxes.

Are cities trying to close down businesses with the use of these cameras?

[FSogol]

1. Send a postcard to those businesses telling them of your decision. n/t

[liberal N proud]

2. Speed cameras are used all over Europe

It reduces police chances and in reality, the number of officers patrolling for speeding.

The fines here are much steeper than they are in Europe which means the cities are simply using them for revenue. Cleveland has implemented mobile speed cameras so you never know where they will turn up.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

3. They're a corporate money grab and a violation of due process to boot.

And many studies have found them to have little positive impact on safety.

The companies that make and maintain these cameras collect big bucks from the local governments for setting these cameras up and catching runners.

Plus I'm just amazed that they've survived legal scrutiny, since you are replacing a human being who can be questioned in court with a machine, which cannot and is incapable of providing any sort of context into alleged violations.

And unlike those given tickets by police officers on the scene of the infraction, people caught by cameras are often unaware of any alleged violation and don't receive notice until days or even weeks later, when their recollection of the event is all but gone.

They are a scam, pure and simple.

[Skink]

6. I was unaware of infraction.

[Buddha_of_Wisdom]

4. here in Colorado, it is a gray area.. but challengable because it is illegal to be served

a citation without a LEO present. (due process violation)

But photo tickets are $40 a pop. I got busted with one a few months ago and paid the fine.

[lame54]

5. I got one of those...

It had 2 pics
1 long distance of my car going over the line
1 close up of my license plate

it was from the city and not the court

the fine was $50 dollars and it would not end up on my record

to put it another way

the city was shaking me down for $50 dollars or they would turn my pics over to the court

I paid it

[frazzled]

7. Make sure you actually were in violation

My husband got one in the mail once, for not stopping before turning right on red. They included 3 photos on the ticket, and he looked and said, "I honestly don't see what I did."

So we went to the web site to look at the video. Damn, we looked at it three times and couldn't figure out how they could say he hadn't stopped. The tape was edited (nice trick), but we could see cars moving next to him when he was not moving. He decided to protest the ticket and got a court date. The judge looked at the video and was bowled over, too. Said she'd never seen that, and that the state had failed to meet the burden of proof. Yeah, I bet.

Most people will assume they did something and just pay the $100. Don't. There is a real problem with due process with these camera violations. It's really complicated (and also involves people who understand photographic and moving-image editing), so I leave it to some legal group to start protesting these. In the meatime, yeah, avoid those intersections.

[tridim]

8. I got my first one last month, came with a video and everything.

I studied the video frame-by-frame and the light was yellow one frame before I entered the intersection, and red one frame after. Busted, by the fucking speed of light and a computer fast enough to notice. I didn't even remember the original infraction because it never crossed my mind that I did anything wrong. Really, really lame.

Of course there is nothing I can do about it. Just pay The Man.

[B2G]

9. A guy once got one and sent them a photo of a $100 bill

They sent him back a picture of handcuffs.

Lol.

[louis-t]

10. Ha!

[loli phabay]

12. rofl, fecking genius

[sinkingfeeling]

11. Just a question, but why can't you drive without violating a law?

[NV Whino]

13. There is the letter of the law and the spirit of the law

Example: crossing the double yellow line to avoid an obstacle, pedestrian, bicyclist, double parked delivery van or whatever, assuming no one is coming from the other direction. Camera sees the letter of the law. You crossed a double yellow. Spirit of the law, you avoided a dangerous situation.

[Lex]

14. So you were speeding for a reason?

[NV Whino]

15. What? Me speed?

Seriously though, sometimes there are reasons to speed. Medical emergency is one. I was once let off from a ticket with a warning because I was taking a cat to the vet. A camera wouldn't do that. An officer would.

[MindPilot]

19. Because it is simply not possible -- a lot of traffic laws are "gotchas"

By the exact letter of the law I cannot back out of my driveway which is on an ordinary residential street because there is a double yellow line.

Most speed limits are set artificially low.

Traffic lights are rarely timed to enhance the flow of traffic; they are timed to make it easy to be in a situation where you either have to slide to a stop or punch through the yellow.

[SheilaT]

16. We have them here in Santa Fe.

Every day they are in more or less a different location, except that they use perhaps 15 different locations altogether. They need to have the right place to park the van, and much of the city isn't suitable.

But every day the newspaper posts the locations, and there is almost always a sign about a hundred yards from the van telling you it's there. I also understand that it gives you a 5 to 10mph grace before ticketing.

I wish they'd post vans for running red lights which is the biggest problem in this city. Most drivers seem to treat the light turning red as only a mild suggestion that perhaps they now shouldn't enter the intersection. I'm surprised there aren't a lot more accidents because of this.

[voteearlyvoteoften]

17. Got 3 and haven't paid one yet

Got one for a right on red. I did not stop completely . Never paid it but I moved. Daughter got one late at night in unfamiliar area. She was guilty too( Just made a mistake and no other cars anywhere near.) Car in my name so ticket came to me. Employee got one in company truck. Turned right on red. Had stopped completely. Took to court and lost because he was over the white line when he stopped! Never paid ,truck in company name can't suspend license of corporation. Got notice that my license was about to be suspended for daughter ticket. Called clerk of court . She said that since I hadn't signed for the registered letter that was sent they could not suspend me. Makes sense that they would have to notify Before suspending.(I think thats what happened on the first one when I had moved.)
This has been several years ago and no repercussions so far.
Moral of the story( at least for Florida) DON'T sign for the registered letter and you may be ok.
Tickets were in 3 different small towns.
LoL I am so bad. ( but they were for @ $125 might not mind paying so much if they were $40)

[Mariana]

18. In some places, they've shortened the yellow light times

so much that it's just about impossible to stop safely before the lights turn red, so as to collect more revenue from these things.