More Traffic Light Cameras In Center City Philadelphia

More Traffic Light Cameras In Center City Philadelphia

Philly.com reports that cameras to monitor red lights at the intersection of Broad Street and Vine Street were installed and activated effective 1201am today – Monday, October 3, 2011.  This is the 20th “high risk intersection” in Philadelphia that has been equipped with technology to catch and penalize those who run red lights.  According to the article, violators will receive warnings for the next 60 days and then on Dec. 2 and after the fine will be $100.  The goal of the project is to protect pedestrians and student who cross the busy intersection:

Philadelphia Real Estate Blog – Broad Street Vine Street Intersection

“These new cameras will help protect all pedestrians, such as the students that attend Roman Catholic High School,” Philadelphia Parking Authority executive director Vince Fenerty said in a statement. “From now on, people will think twice before speeding up Broad Street to make a light.”

Currently, Philadelphia is the only city in Pennsylvania permitted to have these cameras but legislation has been introduced in the House of Representatives to expand the program to other Pennsylvania cities.  earning income for Philadelphia and Pennsylvania and preventing deaths seem to be the rationale for the use of this technology.

“Philadelphia’s revenue from fines is split 50-50 between the city and the state, which distributes it to municipalities for transportation projects. For this fiscal year, which ended March 31, the 141,571 citations issued to Philadelphia scofflaws yielded $7.6 million, according to the latest Parking Authority report.  Red-light runners cause hundreds of deaths and tens of thousands of injuries each year, according to highway safety authorities. A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety concluded that red-light cameras had reduced the rate of fatal crashes by 24 percent in 14 cities nationwide that introduced them between 1996 and 2004.”

And the money being made on this is not a small amount

Philadelphia’s program has brought in about $28.4 million in fines since it began in 2005. The Parking Authority used about $15.4 million of that to cover equipment and administration costs associated with the program.The first cameras were installed at Grant Avenue, Red Lion Road, and Cottman Avenue along Roosevelt Boulevard in the Northeast. Since then, intersections have been equipped in South Philadelphia, West Philadelphia, and Center City.

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Blog post compliments of CenterCityTeam’s Philadelphia Real Estate Blog

Frank L. DeFazio, Esquire
Prudential Fox & Roach Realtors – Society Hill
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