Red light cameras in Lubbock will continue to operate, despite a quarterly report released Tuesday by city officials that showed an increase in accidents at intersections monitored by the system.
According to the report released by the City of Lubbock Traffic Engineering Department, when comparing July, August and September statistics from 2006 and 2007, intersections with red light cameras showed an increase in total collisions of 33 percent, with rear-end collisions increasing by about 50 percent.
The report indicates that during the same time frame, the total number of vehicle accidents at all intersections decreased by about 5 percent.
There are 12 locations for the red light cameras in the city, including three near the Tech campus: Indiana Avenue and 19th Street, University Avenue and 19th Street, and Frankford Avenue and 19th Street.
The cameras were put up in June and were made fully active in July.
It is too soon to judge the success of the red light camera program, said Marsha Reed, director of Public Works.
"The council has asked us to come back in a year," she said. "After that year, we will come back and make a recommendation to continue the program or not to continue the program."
Todd Klein, city councilman for District 3, said he was one of two dissenting votes when the city council voted on the red light camera issue - a decision he still stands by.
"It wasn't simply that I opposed the red light cameras, I thought there was a need for greater enforcement," he said, "but I thought there was a better way to do it."
In addition to more law enforcement at intersections, Klein said he suggested extending the time a light is yellow.
He said he believes public safety was not the only incentive city officials had to approve the cameras.
"There is a concern that the way it is structured it is a revenue mechanism," he said. "At one point the city manager basically put a hiring freeze on police officers until the red light camera issue was resolved."
Klein said while he believes the cameras may prevent people from running lights at certain intersections, the overall habit of running lights has not been alleviated.
"It does change patterns so people are extra weary of getting a technical red light violation," he said. "Cameras detect, but don't prevent, red light running."
Floyd Price, city councilman for district 2, said he believes the increase of collisions at red-light camera intersections are the result of bad driving habits.
"Right now, a lot of (people) don't realize where those cameras are, and then they look up and see the intersection and say, 'uh oh, I better stop,' and the person right behind them will slam right into them," he said. "But if they would drive accordingly, there would not be a problem."
Price said he believes it will take at least six months of data to see a change in driving behavior patterns.
He said he believes drivers need to become more accountable.
"It's not the camera that causes those accidents," he said. "We like to blame anyone but ourselves for what's going on with us. Red-light cameras don't drive cars. People do."
Having previously worked in law enforcement for 33 years, Price said he believes the best way to get a message across is by issuing monetary consequences.
"In order to slow things down, you've got to get in their pocket," he said. "I would love to see (red-light cameras) stay here forever, and I would like to see one on every corner."
Reed said reports on revenue gained from the program are not available.
Capt. James Shavers of the Lubbock Police Department said citations issued to individuals turning right on red lights are looked over by officers of the LPD Traffic Division to assess the legitimacy of the violation.
"Those are the most rejected," he said. "We try to be very generous when we look at those."
Jere Hart, traffic engineer with the city, said he believes measuring the effectiveness of the cameras could take up to three years, and media exposure to the red-light camera program has been beneficial.
"No matter what your position is on this, all of the media campaign - both pro and con - that has occurred has brought the issue to the public's attention on a very significant scale," Hart said. "Everybody I've talked, to all over the city, said that while there are still people running red lights, they see a significant number less."
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