Red Light Cameras

Close up of the camera box at 1st and E

Red Light Cameras are automated traffic safety devices that record video and/or take pictures when a vehicle has entered an intersection on a red light. The photos and video are then reviewed by a police officer and a citation is sent in the mail to the driver.

The penalty is $370 and a point on one's driving record. The monetary fine has been raised numerous times by the state since Red-Light Cameras became legal in California.

In order to be cited, one must cross the intersection's limit line while the signal is red. California law requires a clear picture of the driver and license plate in order to be fined. This photo must also match the picture on the driver's license of the vehicle's registered owner. Due to these facts, not every violation results in a citation. California's legislation requires a clear photo of the driver in order to issue a fine and add a point to your driving record as a moving violation. Red-light running is a very serious traffic violation because T-bone crashes are among the most dangerous types of crashes, occurring on the side of a vehicle with little protection for passengers during a crash.

Cameras in Davis
Success of Red Light Camera Programs
Controversy

Avoiding Fines

Conclusion

Further Reading

Brief Aside

Cameras in Davis

Around or before December 12th, 2005, the City of Davis began monitoring red light violations using video cameras at the following intersections:

New warning sign at 1st and E Streets

Eastbound Russell Blvd at Sycamore Ln. (Central Davis)
Westbound First St. at E St. — The Worst intersection in Davis
Northbound Pole Line Rd. at Fifth St. (East Davis)
Eastbound Chiles Rd. at Mace Blvd. (South Davis)

There were over 50 warnings sent out in just the first two weeks of the grace period, all caught by only two (of the four that will be active) cameras. The city has entered a contract with Nestor Traffic Systems in which the city will pay no more than a flat fee or what the cameras actually collect, whichever is less.

The cameras on Russell and First went live around Dec. 13, and 30 days after will be a grace period, in which violators will only receive a photo in the mail and will not be fined for the violation. The cameras on Chiles and Pole Line went live in mid-January 2006.

Today's traffic cameras can detect vehicle speeds, but their use by Davis Public Works remains a mystery. Loop detectors buried in the ground can also be used to measure the speed of red-light runners. The traffic cameras installed in Davis are 100% directional, which means if you are going any other direction then the camera does not track you.

Bicyclists can not be cited using Red Light Cameras because there is no legislation permitting cities to do so as well as the fact that cameras can not easily see the registration stickers on a bike.

Apparently, violation video footage will be available on the Internet for review. The URL for the footage is not yet known.

Success of Red Light Camera Programs

Camera set-up in front of the Natsoulas Gallery at 1st and E

Many municipalities have had different experiences with red light cameras. Cities such as Washington DC saw an increase in accidents. This was attributed to a short yellow light that creates a "dilemma zone," making it difficult for a vehicle to clear an intersection safely. If a motorist is traveling inside this dilemma zone while approaching the intersection, he must either proceed through the intersection on a red light or brake very suddenly, possibly entering the intersection on the red. Rear-end collisions may also rise as more vehicles screech to a halt to avoid getting a violation. Washington DC also issued false citations, causing doubt in citizens' minds whether the cameras were reliable.

The city of Fresno had to shelve its program because their cameras were not taking clear photos of the drivers. The city also wasn't making enough money on the program to justify the continuation of the program.

On the other hand, cities such as San Francisco have had a positive experience with red-light cameras. They report that accidents are down and that there is a positive "spillover effect" to neighboring intersections where the cameras were installed. They have also withstood many legal challenges in court.

Controversy

The flash strobes and a couple cameras on a pole by Holiday Cinema at 1st and E

Red light camera programs around the nation have generated a lot of controversy. Many feel the cameras are an invasion of privacy and are another means for "Big Brother" to spy on citizens and control their lives. Red light cameras represent yet another small step towards complete control of our daily lives by the government. What could be next? Automated speed enforcement?

The cameras are also seen as a revenue generator that is merely disguised as a traffic safety tool. While some cities may be making a lot of money, other municipalities report receiving very little revenue from their programs, breaking even or even losing money. About 40 to 50% of the cost of a ticket goes to the State of California.

Alternatives to red light cameras include enforcing current traffic safety laws instead of investing in costly camera programs which may or may not increase traffic safety and city coffers. Money could also be better spent on more police officers to roam the city instead of stationary cameras positioned at a few intersections.

However, others feel that there is no excuse for running a red light because red-light runners are rarely caught and are putting other motorists' lives at risk.

In addition, several citizens have concerns over the strobe lights that flash to take photos when a red-light violation has occurred. The flash may be too bright, blinding motorists for a split second and causing a major accident. However, the flash may be just short enough to take a good photo of the driver and license plate. The flash may surprise motorists, but not blind them.

Avoiding Fines

Some citizens have been so frustrated with red-light cameras that they have bought special sprays that prevent your license plate from being photographed. The spray reflects the flash back to the camera so that your license plate gets whited-out in the photo. The spray is invisible to the naked eye and was completely legal until December 31, 2007.

Um.... how about not driving through red lights.

A new California law took effect on January 1, 2008. AB 801 makes it illegal to sell or use a product (spray coating) that obstructs or impairs the recognition of a license plate by an electronic device operated by police or toll authority. The fine for using a product to obscure a license plate is approximately $146, and the fine for selling such a product is approximately $900.

Conclusion

The success of a red-light camera program hinges on whether the program is able to perform down to the exact letter of the law so the program is able to hold up in court. Cities such as Fresno and Washington DC were unsuccessful because of problems such as wrongful citations, unclear photos and short yellow lights. These problems caused the citizens to challenge the camera program in court.

It is also important that municipalities treat red-light cameras as a traffic safety device rather than a revenue generator. Citizens will be much more accepting of the cameras if they know the program isn't just a scheme to squeeze money out of motorists. This can easily be avoided if revenues from the program are used solely for purposes such as increasing traffic safety or funding local schools. Even if the cameras do not generate money, they may be worth it to deter motorists from running red lights.

Comments:

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In my opinion red light cameras are absolutely imoral. the key principle of our legal system is that every defendant has the right to face his or her accuser in court. if a witness points you out as commiting an illegal act, you are allowed to question, interogate, ect. the witness when you are on trial. how can you do this with the camera. if the camera had a technical problem you will be unjustly ticketed. there is no way of knowing if the camera is right, since the camera cant talk. in my opinion if the camera does not physically present itself at trial you should automatically win (just like when the cop doesnt show). joking aside, what happens when someone else who looks similar to you is driving your car. i personally have a twin who drives the car all the time. also what happens if the car is registered to two different people who look similar, who do they send the ticket to.—MattHh

I've been issued a red-light camera ticket in San Francisco for a violation that occurred when someone else was driving my car. On the form they have a blank to specify who was driving your car if it wasn't you. In my case, the driver of my vehicle was happy to take responsibility, but it didn't seem fair that I should be doing law enforcement's job— i.e., figuring out who broke the law when they can't. The proposition that I get stuck with a red light ticket unless I identify the driver of my vehicle sort of flies in the face of how our legal system is supposed to work. The fact that I can disprove their accusation — that I was not the person driving my car ("it doesn't even look like me") should be sufficient. —jr

Depends what red light company they are from. If it's Redflex, then redlight runners are SCREWED. They use videotape and photos of front and back. The video also allows them to see if there were extenuating circumstances, such as the offender being tailgated. – ApolloStumpy

At what point in the red-light running does the camera issue a citation? Do you have to be completely out of the intersection before it turns red?

It's a myth that you're safe if your front tires cross the line. So yeah, if any part of your car is in the intersection when it's red, that would be bad. From what I see in Apollo's comment above, the Redflex cameras take photos and video. I bet if they say they caught you, they most probably did. And they also send the photos to you. You could contest it, but it's a hard case to make I've heard. Unless you can complain about tailgating or something (which Apollo mentioned won't work with Reflex).
Actually, my understanding is that if the front bumper of your car is over the limit line (or first line of the crosswalk) before the light goes red, it's legal for you to proceed on through. The law states that "A driver facing a steady circular red signal alone shall stop at a marked limit line." If I have already crossed that line when facing a steady circular green or yellow signal, then it is a logical impossibility for me to stop at the line when faced with the red. -MattJurach
I learned when i got my commercial drivers license that is also depends on your speed. If you are going under the speed limit when you enter the intersection then you are alright. Yellow means slow down and prepare to stop. So if have crossed the line when the light turns red and are going below the speed limit, then you are abiding the law. The problem is that most people accelerate when they see a yellow light, thus being in violation when they enter the intersection. Supposedly a lot of redlight cameras also record your speed. -BrianSolecki
California Vehicle Code section 21452(a) indicates that the significance of a yellow light is merely to warn that a red light will follow. Nowhere does it say that you cannot enter an interesection. Provided that the front of the vehicle has entered the intersection before the light turned red, one has not broken the law at all. There is no reason to speed up, because your only concern (besides safety) should be that you were legally entering the intersection (which you can do on a yellow). This is the same reason that cars turning left—but unable to, due to oncoming traffic—are allowed to remain in the intersection so they can turn even though their light turns red. So feel proud to enter an intersection on a yellow. As Jevan elsewhere on the wiki pointed out, the DMV says, "When you see the yellow light, stop if you can do so safely. If you can’t stop safely, enter the intersection cautiously." -jr

2006-04-06 15:13:43 Some of these red-light cameras are so close to the ground that you could knock them off the pole with a 2x4. Just an observation. —MichaelGiardina

2006-04-07 16:44:27 An article that contains all you need to know on red light cameras.

Basically, (at least in Sacramento County) there are two coils in the roadway that activate .02 seconds after the light turns red. You have to cross both for a citation. Each time you cross the coil, it triggers the camera to take a photo showing your car at the intersection when the light was red and in the middle of the intersection as well, shoring up your violation. Red light cameras are a goddamn embarrasment for money hungry cities and counties looking to make a buch while flagrantly violating one's due process at the same time. I don't want to get into the legal sermon now, but any witness testifying at a criminal trial (which traffic court is) needs to have first hand knowledge of the incident in question. Some pig from the CHP who got some blurry photos plopped on his desk does not count. —StanOklobdzija

2006-04-07 18:53:06 What if you cross them on your bike when the light is red? I've done that countless times. —JjDeng

As far as I know, bicycles are treated the same as other vehicles... but it's not like the cameras will be able to see your license number, if your bike is even registered. Who would they send the ticket to? —BrentLaabs
i doubt the camera photographs the bike lane since if that were the case every car making a right against the red would be ticketed. —MattHh
I'm sure they can see you, but as for tickets, I should have gotten at least 25 by now. —TusharRawat

$370 * 25 = $9,250 —MatthewLow

2006-04-08 14:18:10 The thing I always wondered is if these increase accidents from people stopping when they shouldn't at an intersection (like when the green turns yellow and they slam the brakes not to get a ticket). —RohiniJasavala

I know I'm braking faster when it turns yellow so people might rear-end me if they're expecting me to go through the light. I'm actually relieved that I come to a red light at a red light intersection. —LoriTobias
I put the brakes on when the light turns yellow and then it's my fault that you run into me because you're following too closely or not paying attention? PLEASE! Try telling that to the judge - or your insurance company. Good luck! PaulThober

2006-04-10 20:02:16 Does anyone know what the camera looking things on top of the lights at the intersection for Sutter Hospital are for? I thought they were redlight cameras, I guess not. —ZacMorris

I think you might be talking about the little sensors that ambulances and fire trucks use to change the lights as they approach. These sensors are much smaller than the cameras.

2006-04-12 16:25:28 From a bus driver... Okay, so here's the deal. If you cross the limit line, imaginary or painted, before the light goes red, you have the right-of-way in the intersection. This is why you are told to eke out into the intersection when you have a yield-left-on-green. That way, when the light goes yellow, you can still make the turn without waiting for the next cycle. You could sit and have a tea party (not recommended) and it'd be your right-of-way. When it's not: if you are one of those people who feels compelled to go through an intersection, green or yellow, without making sure you can go all the way through. (I personally hate those people since they block all kinds of traffic just to sit with their butt in the way, grr.) On that note, be nice to buses. We are 40' long, a kajillion tons, and can kick your ass; we're just opting not to. haha —JulieEickhof

2006-08-24 15:40:48 so does that camera light at sycamore and fifth actually catch you when you do that whole "no right turn on red?" —StacyWong

2006-10-01 00:00:48 Has any one been ticketed on sycamore and fifth when you do that whole "no right turn on red?" —ChrisBrown

2006-10-01 10:27:03 I went to Kragen yesterday and they told me the license plate spray that reflects the red light camera flash is now illegal. —EmmyMelton

2006-10-01 19:22:43 StacyWong- Did you ever get a ticket for that violation? I turned right on sycamore and rusell when the no right turn on the bike light turned on all of a sudden...I didn't see a flash though, is the flash obvious??? —ChrisBrown

2009-01-09 15:37:41 anyone know if there are red light cameras at pole line and cowell? they are some sort of camera, maybe emergency vehicle sensor but they face all directions —joeh

2009-03-11 01:30:49 I used to see flashes going off when people driving through the intersection in front of Borders (1st and Richards)ran red lights. I no longer see this. Perhaps they have stopped using the cameras, or perhaps I just haven't been around when people were driving through a red light (perhaps the population of Davis learned not to do that, so it is now a rare event?) Anyone know? —IDoNotExist

2009-07-20 23:25:16 I've had the light flash me when the light was green but not wearing my seatbelt. Can davis police use these cams to issue seatbelt tickets. Its happened twice im thinking its not by chance. Im just curious. —crich

It is under primary enforcement in California. No idea if they would try to use them, but they can. Wearing your seatbelt is a good idea for other reasons; a ticket is far cheaper than the loss of earning power because you are missing limbs or are otherwise physically or mentally handicapped due to injury. —jw

2009-07-21 12:39:58 Anyone have any statistical data? It'd be nice to add it to the page. I remember about a year after these cameras were put in, there was an aggie article about them, with the numbers of how many citations were mailed out. A pretty hefty amount, iirc. And were any of the original fears when these were first put in about rising accident rates at these intersections turn out to be even remotely valid? —EdWins

2009-07-21 15:58:29 At the Sycamore/Russell intersection, I "accidently" went when the *green* bike signal went on, I was turning left from Sycamore to Russell. I didn't see a flash or anything, hoping I don't get a ticket. I guess I just wasn't paying attention and just saw the color green and started going. Any ideas? —mperkel

2009-07-21 16:04:02 My friend got ticketed at the First Street light for turning right. He had to basically pay the ticket, then go to court to have the ticket thrown out and have his money returned. —JoePomidor

2009-07-21 16:41:51 A similar thing happened to me at that same intersection, mperkel. I wasn't paying attention and when I saw the light change to green for the people turning onto Russell, I stupidly drove through the intersection. I felt awful about it and I'm glad I didn't cause an accident. I did however see a flash and knew I was going to get a ticket. Three months went by and I hadn't received anything in the mail so I called the police department. I was told that I most likely lucked out and was promptly told not to do it again. I would check to see if your license and car are registered with your current address. You can always call the police department like I did to see if there are any outstanding citations. —EmmyMelton

2009-08-04 18:30:13 I accidentally turned right at Russell and Sycamore when the no right turn on red went on all of the sudden, i didn't see the flash tho, just wondering if anyone has been ticketed for that before.

—Greenfriedrice

2009-10-04 15:49:52 So the directions such as eastbound indicate only one RLC aimed only in that direction? —RicardoSanchez

2009-10-04 15:52:27 If it's only a single RLC most of those making rights while performing a California stop or going even though there's a sign saying not to should be safe. —RicardoSanchez