More Red Light Cameras Coming as Citations, Revenue Soar in Rockville
Red light camera citations are projected to bring in $1.9 million—more than twice the amount anticipated for fiscal 2013.
Rockville will perch five more red light cameras at the city’s intersections, adding to the five that were installed in August.
Thititan Durasavin, Rockville photo enforcement supervisor, told The Gazette that the new cameras would go up at:
- West Jefferson Street and West Montgomery Avenue.
- Park Road at North Stonestreet Avenue.
- North Washington Street at Middle Lane.
- Gaither Road at Redland Boulevard.
- Tower Oaks Boulevard at the Interstate 270 ramp.
The new red light cameras will be erected in the spring, The Gazette reported.
Camera revenue, citations soar
The finance department presented revenue figures Monday during its quarterly financial report at the Rockville City Council meeting.
The cameras are projected to bring in $1.9 million in city revenue—more than twice the amount the finance department anticipated for fiscal 2013, according to the finance department’s report.
Budget and finance manager Stacey Webster said the boost was due to the newer cameras that were installed in August.
Webster said the new cameras issued a citation that the old cameras didn’t: Drivers who don’t properly stop before making a right turn will get a $75 ticket.
The old cameras only cited drivers who ran red lights through intersections or turned right on red when it wasn’t permitted. The city’s 10 older cameras have been phased out.
According to data collected by the Rockville City Police Department, the five new cameras generated in a few months nearly twice the citations the 10 older cameras produced in a year. The data are posted at the city’s website.
There were 15,133 red light citations issued between August and December 2012, when the city’s five new cameras were operating.
There were a total of 17,794 citations in 2012, city data show.
Comparatively, there were 8,638 citations issued in 2011, when the 10 older cameras were in use.
AAA cries foul, city says it's following the law
Drivers complain that these new cameras aren't fair, that they're getting unwarranted tickets if they happen to stop slighty over the stop bar or are making right turns when there's no apparent traffic.
WTOP interviewed a driver who said she found the tickets “troubling":
"I was floored. I am a safe and careful driver and as I approached this particular three-way intersection at West Gude Drive and Gaither Road on Aug. 7, I made the judgment that, since no traffic was coming from my left because the opposite intersection was turning left, this was a safe turn, " says driver Maggie Lora in an email to WTOP.
The woman told the radio station that Rockville City Police voided her ticket.
AAA Mid-Atlantic has publicly decried the city’s red light photo enforcement.
“Have drivers in Rockville suddenly decided en masse to stop obeying red lights? Not at all," AAA Mid-Atlantic spokesman John B. Townsend II said in a press release. "It all only takes a mere equipment change and vendor change, and voilà, the city adds nearly 10,000 more red light runners than it had the previous year, and a veritable bank vault of new ticket revenue for city coffers.”
In response, city officials say they are abiding by the law.
“Our requirement is all four wheels, including the bumper, have to be past the white line before we start citing,” Durasavin, the photo enforcement supervisor, told The Gazette.
---
Where are the current red light cameras?
- North Washington Street at Beall Avenue (South).
- West Gude Drive at Gaither Road (West).
- West Gude Drive at Research Blvd. (East).
- West Gude Drive at Research Blvd. (West).
- Seven Locks Road at Fortune Terrace (North).
Joe Thomas
10:21 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Guess what Maggie. The law says that you have to come to a complete stop before you turn right. You don't roll through the intersection like most people do. Glad to hear that you got a ticket.
Brad Smith
8:36 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Hi Joe,
Would you be opposed to me following you around and verifying that you don't live in a "glass house"?
lilkunta
10:56 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
joe thomas: please watch this video:
http://www.wjla.com/video/2013/02/rockville-red-light-cameras.html
thanks you.
Ray Drake
10:31 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
@ Joe - this is a cash cow pure and simple. If the city cared about safety - they could pull over masses of people yapping on cell phones or ignoring pedestrian crossings and fine them. This is about the intent of the law - which is safety - not profiteering from ticky-tack violations.
Jon Thor
11:35 pm on Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Exactly. It's not about safety when they ticket you merely for going over that magical white line. You didn't cause a danger by having your tires over the line. This is about revenue, and that's why all these cash-strapped government entities are adding these cameras.
lilkunta
10:59 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
ray drake : it ABSOLUTELY is. Increas of 400%.
In 2011 1, 043 tix given,
In 2012 5,087 tix given. EVEN THOUGH FOR 3 MONTHS CAMERAS WERENT WORKING.
please watch this video:
http://www.wjla.com/video/2013/02/rockville-red-light-cameras.html
thanks you.
Dick
8:33 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
It is no longer about safety, it is about feeding the increasing appetite of government for money.
Temperance Blalock
8:43 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I appreciate the fact that there are people who get "trapped" by the camera during a questionable traffic manuever, and I acknowledge that the camera system is an easy source of revenue, but people should realize that red-light running is an extremely common and dangerous "way of life" in Rockville. Every day when I cross the street in downtown Rockville, on N Washington or Hungerford, there is almost always a vehicle blatantly running a red light in front of me. Last year I stood at one intersection and photographed more than 50 different vehicles sailing through red lights. People who complain about the cameras need to acknowledge that drivers in this area are exceptionally flagrant about violating traffic laws, and that there is an attitude of indifference about pedestrian safety. I was very surprised when I visited Manhattan to find that their drivers are much less aggressive.
Joe Thomas
10:50 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
These are not "red light" cameras. They are "right turn on red" cameras. While I doubt seriously that you took photos of 50 "different vehicles" running red lights I would offer that 49 out of 50 do not obey the "right turn on red law".
lilkunta
11:02 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
temperance( what a lovely name). How MANY of the tix are for red light runners for turning R on red vs speeding.
at west gude & research, in 2011 1, 043 tix given,
In 2012 5,087 tix given. EVEN THOUGH FOR 3 MONTHS CAMERAS WERENT WORKING.
please watch this video:
http://www.wjla.com/video/2013/02/rockville-red-light-cameras.html
Piotr Gajewski
11:17 am on Thursday, February 14, 2013
…just to clarify – there is a very narrow use allowed (by State law) for the money that is collected from these red-light and speeding violations: pedestrian safety – i.e. new sidewalks, etc. So it is not like governments rake in windfalls that they can then spend on advancing their bureaucracies. This is very strictly enforced (I know this from my four years on the City Council).
The system seems to work well. Drivers need to stop on red. If they don’t, their fines go to enhance pedestrian safety. Rockville’s experience, however, shows that over time, drivers modify their behavior for the better (I know I have!), resulting in enhanced safety.
Brad Smith
8:38 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Piotr,
This is a bit misleading, because the money that used to supplement those things can now be allocated to the "general fund" and in some cases any funding left over at the end of the fiscal year that was originally slated for the narrow use can then be purged into the general fund.
Piotr Gajewski
2:34 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Yes, Brad. Of course, money is fungible. But serving on the Council I found that in reality we were able to fund pedestrian safety projects that otherwise we would not have. At the end of the day, there is benefit to specifically dedicated funds.
Brad Smith
2:46 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Specifically dedicated funds are a good idea, but when you qualify them as not being an additional source of revenue that simply is not true. It's important that statements are as accurate as possible.
The dedicated funds subsidize the sources of revenue that were paying for the project before there were specifically dedicated funds, so then that money can be now kept as a windfall that they can spend on advancing their bureaucracies, and the money from the dedicated fund can be used if there is a surplus at the end of the fiscal year, for advancing their bureaucracies. For example, the state of Maryland's municipalities and their speed camera funds, here is what is law:
How can revenue from the fines be used?
Revenue must first be used to recover the costs of implementing and administering the School Zone ASE program. Any remaining balance must be used for public safety purposes, including pedestrian safety programs.
However, for any fiscal year, if the balance after recovering program costs is greater than 10 percent of the total revenue for a political subdivision for that fiscal year, any funds that exceed that 10 percent total must be remitted to the Comptroller to be placed in the General Fund of the State.
Piotr Gajewski
3:49 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Brad,
Of course no municipal legislator would ever allow funds to actually be returned to the State General Fund. Rockville has many pedestrian safety needs, and if there were funds available, we would simply move forward with funding the next one on the list, as it were.
Brad Smith
3:59 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
I think you misunderstood. I know I couldn't italicize it, to differentiate between what I typed and what I copied/pasted ... but if the camera revenue exceeds 10% of the county/municipality's budget for that fiscal year, anything above 10% is FORCED into the state general fund by law, as in the legislator would have no choice (see below).
Aside from that law, there is nothing legally stopping specifically dedicated funds from becoming general and not specifically dedicated funds at the end of the fiscal year.
*************
However, for any fiscal year, if the balance after recovering program costs is greater than 10 percent of the total revenue for a political subdivision for that fiscal year, any funds that exceed that 10 percent total must be remitted to the Comptroller to be placed in the General Fund of the State.
***********
lilkunta
11:04 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
piotr: since you worked on the council ( was it specificallly Rockville Council ? )
you know how you all lie and say one thing but do another. You know that you say you will do right by us the citizens and then in reality funnell money to other places.
Temperance Blalock
1:19 pm on Thursday, February 14, 2013
I absolutely did photograph at least 50 different vehicles running a red light, and it wasn't even particularly difficult or time-saving to do: I just stood at an intersection for about 10 minutes several times and snapped away. I even gave each car an extra second so that the vehicle had definitely run the light after it turned red. After a couple of weeks of this I realized I could go on indefinitely, but what was the point? I mentioned to Chief Treschuk that I'd done this, and he just shrugged and said something about how inconsiderate people have become in the last few years.
Brad Smith
8:43 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Hi Temperance,
You are talking about going straight through an intersection at speed, this is talking about making a right hand turn after being required to stop behind the white line, let the weight of the car shift back as the suspension settles, counting "one thousand one" and then peering out into the perpendicular traffic to turn right.
Since this was only a year ago though, I would encourage you to compress your 50+ pictures into a file and then upload them to www.zippyshare.com to silence the people questioning them. They'll be time/date stamped and GPS coordinate stamped with the hidden meta data attached to the picture and whomever checks them would be able to easily see that 50+ pictures were taken around a span of 10 minutes about a year ago, at GPS coordinates that match your location claim. If you'd like further help doing this, just let me know.
StopBigBrotherMD
7:58 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
The drivers in question did not 'run a red light'. They were making a right turn from a right turn lane. The city should have added either a green turn arrow or made the turn a yield.
One camera at Gaither rd and Gude saw a FACTOR OF 14 INCREASE in the # of citations since Rockville started ticketing for right turns compared to the same period of time last year. So about 13 out of 14 of the tickets are apparently being issued for a slow moving right turn from a right turn lane.
The city did a recent report on the program which it did not even include the word "safety", it was entirely about how it was helping the city's financial situation. Even the NHTSA has said that right turns on red are not a significant safety issue. If you look at the videos on our website, there are no pedestrians present in any of them.
Most who support this simply want stuff from Rockville and the cameras are a way to get out of town motorists to pay for it. Area drivers should go over Mayor Marcuccio's head, tell their state elected officials how this proves photo enforcement is really about, and tell them to repeal Mayor Marcuccio's authority for right turn cameras. If your state lawmakers will not listen to your complaints, do not vote for them in the future... those lawmakers will push for new ways to fine drivers for safe driving behavior in the future. Irresponsible city govts like Rockville need to be de-powered before they set up toll booths along our routes to work.
lilkunta
11:06 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
@ stopBigBrotherMD: at west gude & research,
in 2011 1, 043 tix given,
In 2012 5,087 tix given. EVEN THOUGH FOR 3 MONTHS CAMERAS WERENT WORKING.
please watch this video:
http://www.wjla.com/video/2013/02/rockville-red-light-cameras.html
Temperance Blalock
9:14 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
I didn't say that I recorded 50 red-light runners in the span of 10 minutes. I stood at a couple of intersections at 10 minute intervals, over the course several weeks.
Brad Smith
9:20 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
Ah very good, well either way, zip up the files and post them to www.zippyshare.com, all of the rest of the information is still easily verifiable through the meta data of the pictures and although not applicable to the subject at hand, something worth being aware of for the subject of red light running.
Temperance Blalock
9:50 am on Friday, February 15, 2013
I'll look for them on my backup discs, and if I find them I'll consider whether it's worth spending a couple of hours editing out the license plate information.
Brad Smith
2:36 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
Does anyone think there should be signage indicating right turn on red is being monitored by electronic surveillance?
In my experience, it is safer to NOT come to a stop behind the white line, count one thousand one and then inch forward until I can verify the right turn is safe, then it would be to roll up to the point where I can see both ways safely and then accelerate.
This seems modification to the red light cameras more like a toll/tax, then it seems like it was designed for safety.
lilkunta
11:09 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
@brad: Isnt the correct thing to do stop behind the while lin(bc the light is red). Then ease forward looking r to make sure no one is crossing and looking left to make sure no car in coming.
Brad Smith
2:00 pm on Tuesday, February 19, 2013
It depends on the intersection and the white line placement. I've seen lines that were back to far and I could not see anything. I guarantee they will now start painting back even further to skew the taxation in their favor.
lilkunta
10:33 pm on Friday, February 15, 2013
This is bs. How do we complain. vote out the council members and vote out phyllis marcuccio! I saw this story on ch 7. Rhey recorded various intersections for hours and drivers FOLLOWING THE LAW were ticketed. The cameras flash if your tire touches the white line but you didnt not run the read light. The cameras flash if you turn right on red even after stopping. All tickets are supposed to be checked by a human officer but we know tat doesnt happen. All tickers are approved all FOR THE MONEY.
Joe Shono
3:54 pm on Sunday, February 17, 2013
"This is bs. How do we complain. vote out the council members and vote out phyllis marcuccio!"
Ha! City politics are not taken seriously. That's how clowns like Marcuccio and the rest of the council are elected in the first place. You get what you vote for. I bet a year ago most people didn't even know the Mayor's name.