Red Light Cameras Save Lives, New Study Shows

FAIRFAX CITY, VA — Been grumbling about the city's red light cameras, of which there are four?

A study released Thursday by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety might change your mind.

Its research found that red light camera programs in 79 large U.S. cities saved nearly 1,300 lives through 2014.

On the flip side, cities that shut down such programs caused the rate of fatal red-light-running crashes to increase by 30 percent.

Fairfax, which dubs its program Respect Red, has four such red light camera locations, the most recent of which was added last summer: North Street at University Drive, Fairfax Circle, Main Street at Pickett Road, and Fairfax Boulevard at Plantation Parkway.

“In reading the statistics published by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, it is very apparent that red light camera programs are proving to be an effective method for traffic safety and control," Fairfax police spokesperson Sergeant Natalie Hinesley said Friday in an email. "In the City of Fairfax, our photo red light program has allowed for the maintenance of highway safety at several intersections, while allowing police officers to focus their traffic enforcement efforts on many other areas of concern.

"Visibly displayed red light camera signs help to serve as a reminder for drivers that although a law enforcement officer may not be in the immediate vicinity, the driver is still accountable for obeying all highway laws.”

The city has conducted photo red light enforcement since July 2011.

"We know we have a problem: people dying at signalized intersections because of people running red lights," IIHS President Adrian Lund said Thursday, according to a release. "We know red light cameras are part of the solution."

Photo: Patch