Resident Wants Red-Light Camera Money Used For Safety Programs

Red-light camera systems have netted about $1.3 million for the City of Arnold between the years of 2006 to 2010.

The money goes into the city’s general account, City Administrator Matt Unrein said during a public forum in City Hall on Tuesday night. The city uses the money on snow removal, street repairs, new weapons for police officers, broomsticks and staff salaries.

The red-light camera system money offsets tax revenues lost during the economy, Unrein said to about 150 people sitting in the City Council’s chambers.

During public comments, Perris Haas of Moonlight Drive said, "The money from these red-light cameras should go into safety programs, not into buying broomsticks."

Haas also wanted data for intersections comparable to the red-light camera intersections. Haas wanted to know if the systems directly affected the number of wrecks at an intersection.

Hass also said city council members should support their words with actions.

Red-light camera revenues should go into guardrails around neighborhoods or sidewalks for children’s safety, Haas said.

The cameras have generated about $2.3 million. About $766,000 went to American Traffic Systems (ATS), the Arizona-based company that installs and manages the systems.  Another $232,000 went to the State of Missouri.

About 34,000 tickets have been issued in the cameras’ five years of use, according to data provided by Unrein. About 70 percent of the tickets have been paid.

The Arnold Police Department decides to issue tickets based on the photos and a 12-second video recording, ATS spokesman Jason Norton said during the forum.

Arnold’s red-light camera systems use a motion sensor, a video camera, a still-picture camera and a strobe light, Norton said.  The system is only active when the traffic light is red. No images are taken when the light is green or yellow. 

The sensor detects movement at the stop line, bordering the intersection, when the traffic signal is red. Then cameras take photos and video of the car at the stop line, entering the intersection during the red light, and proceeding through the intersection.

“The police department rejects about 42 percent of all violations,” Norton said. Officers determine drivers enter the intersection due to icy roads or to avoid being rear-ended by another car.

MoDOT determines the duration of yellow lights at the intersections, said Norton and Police Chief Robert Shockey.

“Only department of transportation engineers can access the lights,” Norton said. The mayor, police officers nor the city council members can change the timing of the traffic lights.

“We’ve tried talk to them for five years. MoDOT sets the lights and is concerned about commute times,” Shockey said about increasing the length of yellow lights.

The number of tickets increased to about 9,500, last year, from about 6,200 in the year 2008, according to data provided by Unrein. In 2007, the department issued about 8,300 red-light camera tickets.

News coverage may affect the number of red-light violators, Shockey said. “Publicity gets results, when the cameras are a hot topic the number of tickets goes down.”