Red Light Running on Docket for Ill. Legislative Committee

The Illinois legislature is considering a bill that would permit municipalities and counties to install red light cameras. According to the National Association of Independent Insurers (NAII), if lawmakers pass Senate Bill 2159 they will address one of the most frequent causes of intersection collisions in urban crashes.

A NAII spokesperson testified on behalf of the bill, stating that red light cameras located at urban intersections with high rates of accidents have produced significant reductions in red light violation crashes.

“Public safety is our primary concern and we support the use of red light cameras because they save lives and reduce the number of accidents at intersections,” Laura Kotelman, counsel for NAII, said. “Deaths due to red light running have increased in recent years nationally and Illinois ranks 16th in the country. Each year more than 500,000 injuries and several thousand fatalities are caused due to drivers running red lights.”

Kotelman told the Senate transportation committee that in Illinois there were 219 deaths that could be attributed to red light running between 1992 and 1998. During this time period in Chicago there were 73 deaths from these infractions.

NAII supports installing red light cameras in conjunction with reasonable conditions and procedural safeguards, including the following:

*Red light cameras should only be used to promote traffic safety;
*Traffic signals at red light camera sites should comply with all applicable traffic engineering principles and standards;
*Strict evidentiary standards should be employed to ensure fairness of procedures for issuing red light camera citations;
*Reasonable enforcement “cushions” should be provided so that flagrant, rather than marginal, infractions are targeted;
*Citations should be issued to the owner of the vehicle; however, the owner should have an opportunity to challenge evidence in cases where someone other than the owner was driving the vehicle;

Currently 15 states use red light cameras to enhance traffic safety and reduce accidents.

Topics Illinois