Pickerington Area Taxpayers Alliance

COLUMBUS, Ohio ?— The city's economic advisory committee recommended Monday to add more red light cameras at Columbus intersections.

In a nutshell, the city is counting on drivers to break the law in hopes of bringing in more money, 10TV's Angela An reported.

Crashes at dangerous street corners decreased since the red light cameras were installed.

The city's revenue from drivers going through red lights has increased from $141,505 in 2006 to $375,158 in 2007. That number doubled to $820,000 in 2008, An reported.

City officials said revenue should eclipse $950,000 in 2009.

Another option being considered is placing speed detectors on top of the red light cameras, which could add $2.1 million a year.

Speeders in school zones might also help the city make money. Four vans at targeted schools would bring in $1.8 million a year, An reported.

The city's Public Safety Department told 10TV News that it had no plans to add red light cameras this year but would not review options given Monday's report.

Mayor Michael Coleman's office did not immediately comment on the report until he had enough time to review.



Money, money, monnneeeyyyy.

hmmmm..

so the message is, obey the law and you won't pay a fine.

Good message!

Very poor reporting

If my math serves me right and Columbus has not increased the fine for red light running then the number of red lights ran since these cameras have been installed have increased 7 fold. Columbus seems to care little about the number of offenses only focus on the revenue as they are approaching a million dollars in fines.

I think this reporter needs to go back and ask more questions. She left out some very important details. Focusing only on the revenue generated is only part of the story.

Tweak

Tweak the yellows a little and you can get a great return on your ''safety'' equipment.

Or maybe Cols realized what a cash-cow they can be after the first year and decided to purchase the cameras outright vs having to share so much revenue with Redflex.

But poor reporting is what we've come to expect from the Dispatch and local papers so it comes as no surprise this article was so lacking.