Is Photoblocker spray really works? - Page 2

TerminatorX5 · #11 02-13-2013, 02:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by motordavid

Anecdotal, but we have/have had the red light infraction cams here in Naples/Collier County FL, for the past several years.

The idea was sound, as was the economics: the elected county board was sold on installing the cams to potentially reduce running red lights, and collect fines via licence plate id. They were installed at dozens of major intersections. Intersections here in greater Naples, FL are numerous and most have 2.75-4 min red lights = interminable waits for green lights, with most intersections only allowing a left turn on green arrow.

Some of those intersections were well marked as having cams in place and working, some not so much. The company that installed them 'for free', received a size able cut from each citation issued, whether or not the citation was actually ever paid by the owner of the car, (not necessarily the 'driver' at the time of being filmed.)

The running the red light portion was well embraced by even the anarchists...however, those citations were a small % of the citations: most of the citations were for 'rolling' through a right turn on red, that right on red is allowed at any intersection here, other than those few are marked no right on red.

The main soft spot on most of those 'right on red' infractions were the design of the intersections themselves: to avoid a citation, one had to come to a full, complete few second stop behind the white crossing line, then noogie up toward the turn for sight, pause, then make that right turn on red.

Obviously, many that were cited did not do that multi-step process, and when one did do the full stop, creep up, stop and look and then proceed, there were hundreds of rear end accidents by those behind that lead right hand turn car doing the 'proper' right on red process.

It was a ~2 year uproar over the right turn fiasco, many of the 'citations' were to seasonal out of state lic plated cars which were never paid, the company that ran the cams was earning considerable money, while the county was not, (county only got 'paid' their % when a car owner actually paid a fine), etc.

Most of those cams have come down; that is reasonable, yet not so good, as the red light runners know this. The average right turn on red driver continues to do what they always did = roll through the turn after some/partial/all of a stop on red.

Obviously, pedestrians have the right of way in lighted intersection situs...my concern is the through the intersection red light runners, and the general overall lack of driving skills and observation skills, (approaching car speed, time, distance computing), that few drivers have, esp here in Geezerville FL, in winter season.
GL, mD

that is the point... while idea is great and people agree to it, the execution totally sucks, and the same people who agreed to the idea, but got caught up in the execution - don't like it anymore...

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Gurltech · #12 02-13-2013, 02:07 PM

I am going to go out on a limb here and say it does work.
Have to find the one I used.

Here is why I will say that it works.
My friend who is a cop got 1,500 worth of tickets passing a red light cam on the freeway in D.C. when cam tickets were 150 a pop.
I drive the same stretch and had no idea the camera was there until she told me. No tickets for me as speed limits are mere suggestions to me.

Also when I first moved to the area I sped down another stretch of road and had no idea there was a speed cam there until I got the hacked navigation CD with speed camera alerts. I was so afraid to register my car because I was sure that I had about a million dollars worth of tickets.
Nope none.

Now let's talk calibration.
I walked home from work yesterday and as I was standing less than half a block from a major intersection in D.C. I saw the speed camera light flash as cars were stopped at a red light. No car that I observed crossed the intersection or even blocked the cross walk. But if you happened to be the first car stopped at the red light you got flashed.
And in D.C. it takes pretty much an act of god to get out of a photo ticket.

XR4Tim · #13 02-13-2013, 04:16 PM

The problem I have with the cameras is the lack of due process. You (as the vehicle owner) are guilty unless you can prove yourself innocent. They get around this by making it an "infraction" rather than a "crime", and citing the vehicle owner as "responsible" rather than "guilty". In Cleveland you can get out of the ticket if you sign a notarized affidavit telling them who was driving your car (if you can remember who had your car 3 months ago when it happened).
Anyhow, that's my rant.

JCL · #14 02-13-2013, 04:59 PM

My experience is anecdotal as well, and may not match other's.

I live in BC. All of the red light cameras are paid for by the provincial government, local governments, and the insurance company (we have one). All the revenue collected goes to the municipality. There is no third party with a profit motive.

Here, the owner gets the ticket. If they nominate another driver, and both drivers agree, it goes to that driver. If not, the owner pays.

There is due process, if you don't agree with the ticket you can dispute it, same as any other traffic ticket. You get your day in court. You do tend to be fighting uphill, however, if your only excuse is you don't remember. Other side has photographic evidence. However, if that photo is of a car that you don't own, or there is something wrong otherwise, the court is there to hear that.

We used to have a few cameras, rotated between many sites. You never knew which ones had cameras and film in them, even if there was a box on a pole. Now, we have digital cameras at high risk intersections. They are only activated during higher risk times based on accident history. And the locations of all cameras are published on the web. They are there as a deterrent to inattentive drivers, so if you read about it and slow down, you have just promoted yourself into the attentive category, is their logic.

The way our program exists, I support it. I wouldn't support a for-profit scheme (too many risks). I do think it is hard to police red light running (puts the officer at risk, and is very labour intensive). This is a more cost effective way, IMO. And I think that the consequences of running red lights are high, particularly for innocent parties since the data shows that most of those who are killed aren't drivers in the red light running vehicle.

I totally agree that execution is important. But most of the comments above are about poor execution, and innocent drivers. But the OP wrote that the driver in question was in fact guilty, IIRC.

upallnight · #15 02-13-2013, 05:50 PM

Two things come to mind.

1. A fool and his money is easily separated.

2. A sucker is born every minute.

XR4Tim · #16 02-13-2013, 05:53 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by JCL

There is due process, if you don't agree with the ticket you can dispute it, same as any other traffic ticket. You get your day in court. You do tend to be fighting uphill, however, if your only excuse is you don't remember. Other side has photographic evidence. However, if that photo is of a car that you don't own, or there is something wrong otherwise, the court is there to hear that.

The problem is that nobody has to witness you commit the infraction, and they don't have to prove that you did it, just that your car did. If this were a criminal matter, it would easily be thrown out because of reasonable doubt, and you would not be required to incriminate someone else to get it thrown out. In my case, it was a speed camera, and I was not driving at the time.