NYC’s Red Light Camera Program Quadrupled In Size By New Legislation: DOT UPDATED

STATEMENT FROM NYC DOT COMMISSIONER YDANIS RODRIGUEZ ON THE PASSAGE OF LEGISLATION TO RENEW AND QUADRUPLE THE SIZE OF THE CITY’S RED LIGHT CAMERA PROGRAM 

Editor’s note: Staten Islander News recently covered the push by advocates and the NYC DOT to expand the red light program due to the strong statistical data associated with it.  The prevention aspect seems to benefit from traffic apps such as Waze, since many drivers are prepared to stop due to the presence of the camera about which they were forewarned. 

From an entry about this by the Quora bot: “Waze notifies drivers of red-light cameras as part of its focus on providing real-time information about road conditions and potential hazards to its users. Red-light cameras are installed at intersections to capture images of vehicles that run red lights. By alerting drivers to the presence of these cameras, Waze aims to promote safer driving behavior and encourage drivers to obey traffic signals.

Knowing the locations of red-light cameras can help drivers avoid running red lights, which not only improves road safety but also helps prevent traffic violations and potential fines. By crowdsourcing information from its users, Waze is able to provide timely updates on the locations of red-light cameras and other potential obstacles on the road.

Overall, the goal of notifying drivers about red-light cameras is to enhance road safety, promote responsible driving habits, and help users make more informed decisions while navigating their routes.”

According to the same previous Quora post chain, a police officer used Waze’s police reporting feature to encourage voluntary safe driving behavior. He would stop in various places along the highway, mark it in Waze himself, then move to other spots.  This would also prompt drivers using Waze to confirm his presence, which they likely did.  He noticed that motorists drove more safely and carefully when they thought an officer was nearby.  That should be the primary goal of these tools: to encourage safe driving behavior.

However, a significant issue in many states which we covered previously is the shortening of the yellow light span in states with cameras.  Decreasing the yellow interval increases the number of tickets issued.  Drivers don’t have sufficient time to stop, and some states have intervals lower than the federal limit.  

The NYC Comptroller’s Office made an audit of the speed camera program here, finding that a significant percentage of revenue was lost due to license plate fraud, which the DOT has done little to remedy.  

To give readers an idea of the revenue these new cameras are likely to generate, Staten Islander reached out to the State Comptroller and received the following revenue numbers per fiscal year (for ALL automated enforcement devices across the state – they are concentrated in the city):

NEW YORK – New York City Department of Transportation (NYC DOT) Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez issued the following statement in response to the passage of legislation in the State Senate and Assembly to renew and expand the city’s red light camera program. The legislation renews the city’s red light camera program through December 1, 2027, and allows the city to expand the number of intersections where it can operate red light cameras from 150 to 600.

“The data speaks for itself: where we’ve installed red light cameras, red-light running and related crashes have dropped dramatically. This legislation will renew our red-light camera program and allow us to quadruple the number of intersections equipped with this critical safety tool, helping us fight back against the rise in red-light related tragedies we’ve seen across the city,” said NYC DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodriguez. “We thank State Senator Andrew Gounardes, Assemblymember Jeffrey Dinowitz, as well as the leadership in both chambers and the City Council for their support to make our streets safer.” 

Banner Image: Red light camera similar to those in NYC. Image Credit – manfredrichter