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Redflex under investigation |
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Written by Administrator
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Friday, 11 January 2008 |
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The camera vendor Redflex (which has the majority of city contracts in DFW) is under investigation by the US Postal Inspection Services to see if they have violated mail fraud statutes by sending citation by mail with the words "OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT BUSINESS " on the envelopes to those Redflex accuses of violating the respective city's photo-enforcement systems. Redflex sent a woman in Louisiana a citation demanding payment for a violation in which the driver of a vehicle registered to her was accused of; and warning of the consequences if not paid immediately. The "OFFICIAL GOVERNMENT BUSINESS" label was brought to the attention of the USPS which raised concern with a private business using the official verbage. The use of the phrase "official government business" on an envelope by a non-governmental entity raises red flags for the US Postal Service and could violate a statute prohibiting mail that implies a false connection with the federal government as (39 USC Section 3001).
If you have a citation notice from Redflex with this verbage on it, you can submit it at the site below which was set up to collect more violations to add to what the USPS has already. http://www.reportredflex.com/ |
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Two CIties Caught Cheating Yellow! |
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Written by Administrator
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Thursday, 20 December 2007 |
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So...are you still one of those people who think that the cameras are for your safety? The city of Dallas and Richland Hills were recently found to have "amber times" much shorter than the recommended norm per the Texas Dept of Transportation. Dallas is not obligated to follow TxDOT’s guidelines and doesn't. Of the city's 60 red light camera locations, the yellow signal lights at 21 are shorter than the times suggested by TxDOT’s guidelines. The yellow signal lights at seven camera locations are shorter than TxDOT’s three-point-five-second minimum. Elizabeth Ramirez says the TxDOT engineers are more conservative than they need to be.
"Do I believe that we need to, just because TxDOT's doing that, that's what we need to do? No I don't. I feel like the formula we're using is already conservative," Ramirez told FOX 4. The formula calculates a yellow signal light timing range of three to six seconds, which is in line with federal and state recommendations.
Story Link
I know that your mother told you at one time or another that "...just because someone else is doing it doesn't mean that you have to!" Well..why not in this case? I would think that the state has put far more reasearch into traffic than what the city budget would hold. What would be the harm in doing so? LESS MONEY perhaps? Check out the VIDEO from Fox 4 on Dallas. Dallas is not the only ones in DFW who had their manipulations exposed.... |
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 20 December 2007 )
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Read more...
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Accidents Increase in Harligen |
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Written by Administrator
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Red light cameras cause accidents to increase by one-third in Harlingen, Texas.
Harlingen, Texas experienced an increase in accidents at the intersections where red light cameras were installed. The city of 67,000 near the border with Mexico began ticketing in May 2007. Since then, the total number of accidents at photo enforced locations jumped to 57 compared to 43 in the six months prior to installation -- a 33 percent increase.
Although six months is not a sufficient amount of time to develop an accurate picture of the safety effects of the program, the early figures are consistent with those of independent researchers which show a consistent factor with the deployment of the photo-enforcement programs cited from other cities. In July 2007 an exhaustive study by the Virginia Department of Transportation documented a 29 percent increase in accidents overall at camera intersections throughout the state. The Washington Post likewise concluded that six years of data showed an increase in accidents at ticketing locations in the nation's capital.
Still, Harlingen city leaders scrambled to declare their program a success citing a 47 percent decrease in the number of violations and downplaying the significance of rear end collisions. Redflex, the Australian vendor in charge of the program, has the capability of adjusting camera settings to obtain any desired reduction in the number of citations.
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Last Updated ( Monday, 03 March 2008 )
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