Another City Admits Accidents Not Reduced by Red Light Cameras

A grand jury in San Mateo County has issued a report to Redwood City, regarding a red light camera within the city and its effect (or lack thereof) on safety. As a result, the city was forced to admit that the camera had “done absolutely nothing to reduce traffic collisions.” A response to the report was drafted (in close consultation with Redflex Traffic Systems) and later approved by the city council, which effectively ignored “every substantial recommendation offered by the grand jury.” An example would be that the city “disagreed with the grand jury recommendation that the city measure the program’s ongoing effectiveness by the number of collisions before and after the camera installation.” And, yet another example would be the grand jury recommending that signage be put up to “prevent motorists from being unknowingly trapped” by the cameras. Redwood responded by saying “The city does not have signage at each intersection because it is not required by statute.”