Red-Light Cameras Stalled

Stop-light cameras hit a yellow light Wednesday night as a council subcommittee debated if the city of Salem should ask the state legislature for permission to install traffic control signal violation monitoring systems.

The council's subcommittee on public health, safety and the environment voted three to two to keep the issue in the subcommittee until it has more information. Councilor at large Tom Furey and Ward 7 Councilor Joe O'Keefe voted to send the issue to the full council. Subcommittee Chairman Paul Prevey, Ward 5 Councilor Josh Turiel and Ward 3 Councilor Todd Siegel voted to keep the matter in the subcommittee.

Prevey and Siegel wanted to keep the matter in the subcommittee until the police department and city solicitor could find out how much the installation of the cameras and monthly maintenance would cost the city. They also wanted to know how many violations might be expected.

Mayor Kimberley Driscoll in proposing the red-light cameras estimated that the cameras would pay for themselves through collected fines.

Furey said, “This is an idea whose time has come.” He said too many drivers are distracted by cell phones or drinking as they drive their car, which he described as a lethal weapon, through stop lights.

He said Salem should lead the state in installing these cameras. Salem could be the first city to do so.

Under the proposal, as outlined by Police Lt. Robert Preczewski, the cameras, once approved by the full council and installed, would shoot photos of a license plate on a vehicle that runs a red light. The police department would review each violation and decide if it warranted sending the vehicle owner a ticket.

“I wouldn't ticket a funeral, for example,” Preczewski said.

Fines Would be Up To $100

The fine of up to $100 per offense would be mailed to the vehicle owner by the parking clerk. The fine could be appealed, he said.

The revenues collected for the violations would go to the city's general revenue funds.

Preczewski said the police department believes that the red-light cameras would reduce accidents and would lower the severity of damage and injury caused by accidents. He reported that several cities have seen a reduction in total accidents and a fewer severe injuries and property damage.

The city of Seattle, WA, experienced a 40 percent reduction of accidents. In Florida one accident-prone intersection dropped from 35 accidents to only three or four after the cameras were installed, he said.

He conceded that the cameras appear to cause some increase in rear-end accidents, when a driver stops quickly to avoid running the light and is hit by the car behind. But he said the evidence shows that these accidents tend to be less severe than side-impact accidents.

Preczewski listed the five most accident-prone intersections in Salem. They are the intersections at Canal and Washington streets, the entrance to Salem Hospital off of Highland Avenue, Boston and Bridge streets, North and Essex streets and Derby and Congress streets.

There was little opposition from the public on the issue. Scott Hiltunen spoke against the cameras, saying his research on the Internet had uncovered numerous examples where accidents increased significantly at intersections with red-light cameras.

The proposal, if approved, would be submitted to the state legislature for approval. The town of Pittsfield would be the first in the state to ask permission to install the cameras.

State Rep. John Keenan, D-Salem, has introduced legislation to allow any town or city in the state to install the cameras. A joint House and Senate committee meeting is scheduled on the issue in June, city Solicitor Elizabeth Rennard said.