Two articles on red light cameras this morning.
Santa Fe Sheriff Greg Solano sums up the situation and reiterates his opposition.
“I feel the fines are too high, the private company ‘RedFlex’ which the City of Albuquerque contracts with makes too much of a cut, the lights must be timed correctly, and I am too worried that Red Light Camera’s cause more accidents then they prevent.”
Eye On Albuquerque wonders what possible reason Mayor Marty could have for continuing such an unpopular program in light of his political ambitions.
“What’s keeping the mayor so solidly behind this program? It can’t be public safety, and it’s surely not public opinion. It has to be something else.”
It is simple to get out of a red light camera ticket. Go to court and demand to face your accuser. The red light camera will not be able to come to court. So the ticket should be thrown out. Most people do not know this. They just go ahead and pay the fine.
Um, John G, there is no court. There is an administrative hearing. No accuser required. That’s one of the reasons many of us oppose the system.
“The STOP program is a civil violation, much like a parking ticket. It is not reported to the Motor Vehicle Division.”
“Automated enforcement violations are enforced the same way parking tickets are enforced. The registered owner, or owners, of the vehicle are responsible without regard to whether they were actually driving at the time of the infraction.”