printing the $us

The figures in this article are awesome. Five intersections in one county have generated US $22,695 for RDF in 10 days, yes 10 days. Now what is not to like about this company ?


08/26/2004
Judy O'Rourke [Signal Staff Writer]


The warning period is over. And the 586 warning notices that were sent out during that time did not deter 255 other drivers who blew through red lights at the five Santa Clarita intersections equipped with cameras that snapped their pictures and their car’s vital statistics.
Evidence for citations that cost $341 a pop.
That amounts to almost $87,000 coming due over a 10-day period.
“We’ve gotten a tremendous amount of violations and (the program has) only been in effect three weeks,” said sheriff’s Deputy Anthony Arnold. “If it happens at night, you’re going to get lit up like a Christmas tree.”
The 255 violations occurred from Aug. 7 through 16, said Gus Pivetti, senior traffic engineer. That is an average of five citations a day for each of the five outfitted intersections.
The program is not intended to be a moneymaker, though, officials said.
Law enforcement officers — not employees of Redflex, the firm that supplied the cameras — determine whether a ticket will be issued. The Sheriff’s Department carefully scrutinizes each citation recommended by Redflex, Arnold said. He declined to reveal the number of citations suggested by Redflex.
“If we can decrease (the number of red-light runners) by people stopping for fear of getting a violation, we believe we’ve increased the safety of the community,” Arnold said. “We’ve gone out of our way to give the benefit to drivers.”
Pivetti said a “spillover effect” is expected six months to a year after the program is in force, when municipalities start to see a drop in citations. The city’s contract with Redflex will allow for 20 intersections to be wired, but there are no plans to install more cameras at this time, he said.
Images are captured of the front of the car, the rear of the car with the license plate, a zoom of the driver’s face and a zoom of the plate. The photos are included with the citation.
The system is triggered when a car’s tires roll over sensors imbedded in the street, which are connected to a nearby computer.
When the traffic light turns red, the system is activated. The first sensor signals the presence of the car; the second sensor triggers the camera.
Arnold said the Sheriff’s Department has gotten many inquiries about how the program works. People who question the validity of their citation may visit the station, where they can view the photos and a video loop documenting the infraction.
That seemed to be proof enough for one man, who insisted he was not at fault.
“We slowed the loop frame by frame, and showed him exactly where he was when the light turned red,” Arnold said. “He appeared to be satisfied and wouldn’t contest.”
Cameras are installed at Whites Canyon and Soledad Canyon roads; McBean Parkway and Newhall Ranch Road; McBean and Magic Mountain parkways; Seco Canyon and Bouquet Canyon roads; and Lyons Avenue and Orchard Village Road. The intersections were identified as the top five locations among 20 surveyed for traffic volume, accident history and red-light violations during an eight-hour period last May.
It will be awhile before it can be determined if the program generates extra revenue for itself, Pivetti said. The Sheriff’s Department has not incurred extra costs thus far in implementing the program.
In July, when the first device was installed, Redflex signed a five-year contract with the city for which it did not receive money up front, said Robert Newman, Santa Clarita director of transportation and engineering.
The program was “originally budgeted at $150,000, mostly for staff time and training, the initial start-up to get the program up and running and to get work started.
“The city gets around 50 percent in fine revenue; $89 per fine goes to Redflex for their capital investment,” he said.