red light cameras

[phillyFX4]

Just had these revenue producing gadgets installed here in Philly. Any way to "neutralize" these things? I've read where there has been instances where they(installer, who gates a percentage) are shortening the yellow light to assure more positive hits. I mean, if this thing is activated by the traffic light itself when it turns red it could probably ticket half the rush hour traffic every day. I drive a pickup so I'm not jack-rabbiting from light to light anymore .....I used to do that

back when I was alot younger. Any ingenious aftermarket ideas,( tag covers, sprays) out there in other parts of the country?

 

[cryptokid]

mount youre liscence plate on a door hinge. have a choke cable hooked up to it so that you push the cable in and the tag faces down. get down the road a good ways and pull the choke lever and the tag swings back up.

works every time

we have these speed trap machines on the side fo the road which measure youre speed and photo youre car if you go to fast. i blow by them things all the time at 90+ and never gotten a ticket in the mail yet!

 

[drive it forever]

I have seen a licence plate frame a few years ago at the street rod nationals in columbus, oh, a vendor was selling that would change from crystal clear to a dark tint. With a flip of a switch the frame would hide the plate. It used some sort of 3M film for the effect.

 

[JohnBrowning]

I would not mind if they used a lot of remote photo radar and stop light Camera's if they would actualy have police officers doing legitamate crime prevention and investigation!!! I do not hate LEO's rather I hate how the systems enployes them primarily as rolling revenue agents!!!!!!!!!!

Seems to me that their is enough solid crime to keep them busy!! Between white slave trade, illegal imagrients, terrorists, drug trafficers, illegal porn and prostution, child abuse, abductions, runaways, vandilism,murder,rape hate crimes, domestic abuse, "insert a crime of your choice here" they should be out beating the streets, shakeing the tree etc.....

I know I feel so safe now that they naped that go doing 76MPH in a 70 Zone!!! We are all safer now!!

In tri-city Midland,Bay City, and Saginaw my remote and I got hit on the way to Harry Brown Airport for a late night flight for fun. The County Sherif on the accident first was about 5'8" tall and about 5' wide. He got out of breath walking from his car to ours about 15 Feet from his car. I looked in his car and saw 2 dozen donuts and two of 7-Elevens Super Gulps in hios car. One of the dozen bax of donuts was half gone already. If this guy had to chase me I could run on my hands and get away from him! He could not be on an entry team either becasue he would have to go through the door sideways. This guys job was endangering his health and I do not know how he would be able to do much legitament police work.

[ February 26, 2005, 11:41 PM: Message edited by: JohnBrowning ]

 

[Shannow]

I've got no issue with red light cameras at all.

In fact, I want one in this town where fully laden coal trucks continue to fly through red, even though you've had green for 3-5 seconds.

Speeding cameras at the bottom of hills in a 35MPH zone are a favourite down here...they simply have little to no place in road safety.

 

[Cutehumor]

I saw on the local news channel awhile back about a "spray" that you use on your license plate for these red light cameras. It was available on the internet. I can't remember the name of it though. the local news investigated it and said it was legit. one of those investigation reports. Supposedly it works by reflecting the Flash the camera takes and all you see is a blur on the photo of the plate. one thing is nice is that the spray is not noticeable on the plate, it's clear. you can't tell the plate was sprayed at all. Only reason why I don't have it is because there are only two red light cameras in this city and it's on the same road in the upscale part of town which I never drive on.

 

[brianl703]

If a particular intersection has a higher-than-normal rate of red light violations, chances are that it's a problem with the intersection. Perhaps the visibility is poor, the timing is off, etc.

Putting a red-light camera at such an intersection is no solution. The underlying problem has not been addressed.

It's like replacing a blown fuse with a bigger one instead of figuring out why the fuse blew and fixing it.

 

[srivett]

I've stopped for red lights and had people behind me jump the sidewalk to run the light. I have no problem with the cameras in places where this kind of behaviour is common.

On the other hand, I deliver pizza at 3 am and do a stop/go at some red lights. I do this alot with my motorcycle. You could wait a week for a light to change and it wouldn't even know you were there.

Steve

 

[Shannow]

Brian and Steve, good posts.

Brian, the intersection that I am referring to is certainly disfunctional. It's on the Great Western Goattrack (errm I mean Highway) where it passes through my town, drops to a 50 mile zone for about 3km. The town should be bypassed for sure.

Steve, when I was living in Canberra, I was designated driver one night, and driving some friends home at 3AM. Were in Tuggeranong, and the traffic lights were asynchronised.

Stopped at a red, waited while nothing went through. Drove 30m, stopped at a red, waited while nothing went through. 30m later, the next light went red. I stopped...nothing coming so I went through.

The disco lights were parked in the shrubbery next to the third set of lights.

Deal was that if I blew positive, I took the whole rap. If I blew negative I went free.

 

[Reg# 43897]

I'm with Andrews on this one. We can discuss speeding 'till we're blue in the face but red lights are THE LAW for a dam# good reason...

John.

 

[MarkC]

I'm with John Browning on this one. I see way too many cops sitting on the interstate doing nothing except trying to decide which one of us to gig for some cash this time. With few exceptions, we'ree all going faster than the speed limit, but they'll stop someone at random, and let somebody else fly by at 80mph.
In my opinion, the legal system from cops on up to the courts is geared #1 to make money, everything else is secondary.

 

[andrews]

I was responding, for the most part, about the law breaking in regard to the stop light issue. I don't have a huge gripe about people going five to ten over on an interstate, but running red lights is another issue entirely. While it's true that some police officers appear to be less than suitable, many are great people trying to do a very difficult job. They are assigned areas of patrol and have to answer to senior officers. When they don't enforce the traffic laws and come back to the station with a decent amount of citations...they get chewed out. Is it money? Sure, somewhat. But is it more likely that they do a fantastic job and help protect the public? YES! Just imagine doing their job day after day....and getting paid about what a teacher does. A person that wants to do that would have to be very service oriented and dedicated to helping others.....not the stereo-typical garbage about eating donuts (gee, never heard that one) or beating up minorities.
My hats off to them.

 

[Al]

quote:

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Originally posted by andrews:
I have no problem with them. Just obey the law. It amazes me how some of the people posting here can just openly discuss law-breaking like it's a fun game. I sure hope the next moron that runs a light doesn't kill my lovely wife or son that IS obeying the law. IDIOTS! Get a life....don't risk taking one.

---

I agree ..And I have no problems with surveillejnce cameras to stop crime. I'm more afraid of peeps running running red lights and killing me and crime (that could be cut down by surveillence) than I am of big brother.

 

[sprintman]

I wish every set of lights had camera's. Too many idiots out there and I want my 6 yr old to have a chance of getting to my age.

 

[widman]

Red lights are really there for a purpose (in the US, anyway) Here we normally observe them during daylight hours, but it is dangerous to stop at night, so you slow down.
Sundays and hollidays there isn't much crime or trafic, so I don't know the real excuse, but no one waits for the green.

 

[metroplex]

I totally disagree with andrews.

Red light cameras are there to generate revenue.

The solution to stop/go traffic is to eliminate as many traffic lights as you can. Don't use timers at night, instead keep them green on high volume roads and flash amber on low volume roads - let the folks on the low volume roads make the turn/go when it's clear (this is how it's done in NY suburbs).

I hate timer based systems or systems that rely on 1 car stopping to trigger it. We have a light in front of some stupid church. So when granny leaves the church from bingo, everyone on the major road has to stop for her to leave the church

 

[benjamming]

quote:

---

Originally posted by andrews:
I have no problem with them. Just obey the law. It amazes me how some of the people posting here can just openly discuss law-breaking like it's a fun game. I sure hope the next moron that runs a light doesn't kill my lovely wife or son that IS obeying the law. IDIOTS! Get a life....don't risk taking one.

---

Black and white world you live in eh? There are almost always exceptions. If it's ALL for safety, why are yellow light durations cut down in some instances? If you give a blank check to the government they will cash it, but for a lot more than you intended.

Don't get me wrong. I generally agree with you. Red light runners are extremely dangerous. I would say more so that what the general population speeds at in good conditions. I don't have any statistics to back that up with, it's my opinion.

 

[andrews]

Most folks here seem to be pretty reasonable to me. The impatient ones may need to take a prozac pill though. I mean c'mon....complaing about stopping at a church so some senior citizen can get out safely? What's so bad about that? Are we all in such a hurry to get home so we can kick the dog or what? An old lady? AN OLD LADY??? Wow...take it easy!

Does the word "gentleman" mean anything anymore?

[ February 27, 2005, 09:12 PM: Message edited by: andrews ]

 

[labman]

quote:

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Originally posted by phillyFX4:
Just had these revenue producing gadgets installed here in Philly. Any way to "neutralize" these things? snip...

---

Easiest way is to stop for red lights. I am sorry, but those of you that are blasting through a intersection after the light is green the other way are a low form of life endangering us all. It is very simple, stop on red, go on green. Use some reasonable judgment on yellow. If the cameras are used as a tool to make red lights work, fine. Then we can cut out the long yellows and 4 way red cycles. Dumb idea. People just take advantage of it to run the red lights later and later in the cycle.

We need to look at ripping out a bunch of lights and putting many working only some hours or sensor. In my little burg, after they roll up the sidewalks, downtown, they put the lights on blinker, yellow for the state highway. The newer lights cluttering up the state highways near the edge of town are wasting time and gas 24/7. I though the Readers' Digest swooned over a particularly stupid light in Ohio in an issure about a year ago. It was one of those intersections where due to visibility, people on the side road took their life in their hands pulling out. The state had bought the old house blocking the view and planned to knock it down. Then some women got killed. I have no quarrel with the temporary 4 way stop they put up, should have been done before somebody got killed. But then because the woman's husband fussed so much, she now has a light as a memorial. The house may be gone now, but the light will be there forever.

 

[andrews]

I have no problem with them. Just obey the law. It amazes me how some of the people posting here can just openly discuss law-breaking like it's a fun game. I sure hope the next moron that runs a light doesn't kill my lovely wife or son that IS obeying the law. IDIOTS! Get a life....don't risk taking one.