While the growing trend in the state is to end red light camera programs entirely, the City of Oakland is considering a new idea: increase the number of red light cameras.
The city currently has 13 cameras monitoring driver behavior. The proposal considered by the Council would increase that to 30. The new cameras would be operated by Redflex, the widely used Arizona-based company. The contract would be for three years at a cost of $2.2 million.
Proponents of red light cameras, including the police department, say that intersections that have red light cameras have seen a drop in the number of accidents. In the most extreme case, traffic collisions at one intersection dropped from 102 to 50. But opponents of the cameras say that other intersections have actually had an increase in collisions – proving that the cameras do not change behavior.
A recent law signed by Governor brown clamped down on the use and practices associated with red light cameras.
Read the full story at the San Francisco Chronicle.