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Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Seeing red: Red light cameras
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Are red light cameras a help or a hindrance to traffic safety in Georgia?
House Speaker Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram) doesn’t like them and wants the Legislature to revisit the 2001 law allowing local governments to employ cameras to nab drivers racing through lights.Editorial
While he wants to ban their use outright, Richardson would reconsider if the $70 fine imposed on red light runners was eliminated or reduced drastically.
“It is wrong to do it for revenue purposes,” Richardson says. “We have to always remember we are taking money from citizens.”
Richardson says that he has a better idea: “I bet for the money we spent on these cameras, we could put a little bit more asphalt down,” he said. “If we put down more lanes of traffic… people wouldn’t have to speed through that light because they were worried about being late for work.”
Do you think the cameras are effective or is the answer widening roads, as the speaker maintains?
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