Nearly one-quarter of all US car accidents occur when drivers run red lights, according to the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Since placing cops at every intersection is unrealistic, many municipalities have installed cameras that are triggered whenever a car crosses the intersection when the light is red (How Stuff Works).
The violator is sent a ticket ($100 in the Chicago area), identified via license plate number, without the need for additional officers. Problem solved, right?
Not so fast.
In many instances, accidents actually have increased where red-light cameras are installed, according to state data that tracks accident rates at the 14 suburban Chicago intersections (Tribune) that have installed them.
Collisions at Mannheim and St. Charles roads increased from 17 to 24 after the cameras were installed, while broadside collisions (often the most injurious) at Cicero Ave. and 95th St. went from just one to five after cameras were installed. There's always the possibility that the accidents would have increased regardless, but the consistency of the stats is glaring.
Why? Some have argued that people are more likely to slam on the brakes at a yellow light if they notice the cameras, since a ticket would be almost automatic, which of course causes more rear-end collissions.
Statistics showing increased revenue from red-light cameras might be more revealing of the motivations behind using them, since the stated goal of making roads safer apparently has not been achieved. Roger Pawlowksi of the Oak Lawn Police Dept. downplays crash statistics as an indicator of the cameras' utility, but failed to explain his reasoning.
- Ticket's In the Mail: Red-Light Cameras Questioned (ABC News)
- Red-Light Cameras Increase Accidents: 5 Studies That Prove It (National Motorists Association)
- The Trouble With Red-Light Cameras (FindLaw)
- Chicago Injury Lawyers (FindLaw)
