XPost: phl.media, pa.politics   
      
   What good do these do inPa??   
      
   No front plate - no identifying infomration   
      
   mcs wrote:   
      
   > "As Philadelphia prepares to become Pennsylvania's first city to install   
   > red-light cameras at traffic intersections, there is one ugly side effect of   
   > the systems that officials are not promoting.   
   >   
   > In city after city, studies show that, while right-angle accidents drop,   
   > rear-end collisions increase after cameras are installed.   
   >   
   > Drivers, afraid of getting caught on a camera running a red light, hit the   
   > brakes and get rear-ended by the car behind them, studies show.   
   >   
   > The problem is compounded by a brief strobe light that flashes when the   
   > photo is taken.   
   >   
   > "People see these strobes go off and realize they have just run a light, and   
   > they slam on the brakes," said Lon Anderson of AAA Mid-Atlantic, who   
   > supports the use of the cameras as long as they are used for safety and not   
   > to raise revenue.   
   >   
   > In Charlotte, N.C., for instance, rear-end crashes went up by 16 percent   
   > over a three-year period after cameras were installed in 1998, according to   
   > a 2001 study commissioned by that city.   
   >   
   > In San Diego, the rate of rear-end collisions increased by 37 percent,   
   > according to a 2002 study commissioned by that city.   
   >   
   > "What the cameras do is, they change reasonable behavior into unreasonable   
   > behavior," said Greg Mauz, a member of the National Motorists Association, a   
   > group funded by membership dues that is seeking to have red-light cameras   
   > banned nationwide.   
   >   
   > City officials and officials at the Philadelphia Parking Authority, which,   
   > under state and local laws, will oversee Philadelphia's red-light-camera   
   > traffic-enforcement program, acknowledge that rear-end collisions may go up,   
   > but say that will be far outweighed by the decrease in right-angle   
   > collisions, which usually result in more serious injuries than rear-end   
   > crashes.   
   >   
   > "In the majority of the cases, the reduction of the angle accidents and   
   > their severity is greater than the increase in rear-ends," said Charles   
   > Trainor, the city's chief traffic engineer.   
   >   
   > The Parking Authority board is expected to hire a company tomorrow to   
   > install cameras in Philadelphia. Nine intersections are being considered for   
   > cameras. Violators will receive a citation in the mail and a $100 fine.   
   >   
   > The Parking Authority decided to rebid the camera contract last month after   
   > only one company, Affiliated Computer Services, of Dallas, expressed   
   > interest, and potential bidders complained that the agency's request for   
   > proposals favored ACS.   
   >   
   > Parking Authority officials have refused to say which companies have bid   
   > this time around. "We have received more than one" bid, said Linda Miller, a   
   > Parking Authority spokeswoman.   
   >   
   > Officials from the companies that provide red-light-camera systems and   
   > experts such as Richard Retting of the Insurance Institute for Highway   
   > Safety, a nonprofit group funded by insurance companies that studies   
   > traffic-safety issues, say the benefits of cameras outweigh the negatives.   
   >   
   > Maury Hannigan, an ACS vice president in charge of the company's photo   
   > enforcement division, acknowledged that rear-end collisions often go up, but   
   > said that is overshadowed by the reduction in right-angle crashes.   
   >   
   > "Would you rather somebody bump you in the rear, or would you rather   
   > somebody enter your driver's compartment at 40 miles per hour?" Hannigan   
   > said. "That's a no-brainer."   
   >   
   > Retting, who has extensively studied camera systems and is a recognized   
   > expert, said studies done around the world show that intersection crashes   
   > that cause injuries go down by about 25 percent to 30 percent after cameras   
   > are installed, far outweighing the "regrettable" side effect of an increase   
   > in rear-end collisions.   
   >   
   > John Petrozza, president of Mulvihill Intelligent Control Systems Inc.,   
   > which is interested in the Philadelphia camera contract and which installed   
   > a red-light-camera system in New York City as early as 1993, said the   
   > rear-end collisions "normalize" after motorists get used to the   
   > intersections' having cameras.   
   >   
   > Authority officials say they hope to reduce the rear-end collisions by   
   > working with the city to ensure that yellow lights give drivers enough time   
   > to decide whether to stop or proceed without running the light.   
   >   
   > Yellow signals in Pennsylvania are set in accordance with a federal standard   
   > that recommends the light be between three and six seconds long.   
   >   
   > Camera critics contend that setting the yellow lights closer to six seconds   
   > and reengineering some intersections would eliminate the need for cameras.   
   >   
   > Some critics have gone as far as to file lawsuits against cities and   
   > camera-system companies, contending that yellow signals set below the   
   > three-second minimum allowed municipalities and camera-system installers to   
   > reap a financial benefit from fines as more drivers were caught running red   
   > lights.   
   >   
   > Two Baltimore residents, for example, filed suit in July seeking $10 million   
   > in damages on behalf of anyone who received a citation since June 2001 at a   
   > red-light-camera intersection there. They contend that the city and ACS,   
   > which runs the city's camera system, have neglected to correct yellow lights   
   > that are shorter than three seconds.   
   >   
   > They also allege that neglect has profited both ACS and the city. Baltimore   
   > fines violators $75.   
   >   
   > Hannigan, of ACS, said the company does not control the timing of   
   > Baltimore's yellow lights. Baltimore's city solicitor told a local   
   > television news station last month that "we do not believe there is merit to   
   > the case and we will aggressively defend against any lawsuit."   
   >   
   > The winning bidder for Philadelphia's red-light-camera program will be paid   
   > a fixed fee per installed system. The state and local laws authorizing the   
   > city to use the cameras also require that the yellow signals be set in   
   > accordance with state and local standards, which emulate the national   
   > recommended standard.   
   >   
   > The laws also require that signs be placed in "conspicuous" places before   
   > the intersection to alert drivers to the cameras.   
   >   
   > Anderson, of AAA Mid-Atlantic, said signs are critical if the cameras are to   
   > be used for safety as opposed to generating revenue. "It would definitely   
   > cut down on rear-end collisions," Anderson said.   
   >   
   >   
   >   
      
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