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Maryland and speed cameras

Started by Crazy Volvo Guy, March 23, 2009, 03:12:07 AM

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Crazy Volvo Guy

Anyone know if they've got speed cameras on I-81 or I-68?

Deciding how to drive to NH this summer...thanks for your help.
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Truvelo

I don't know about the freeways but this article published today shows how stealth cameras are being set up disguised as mailboxes in Montgomery and Prince George Counties, MD and are raking in lots of $ :banghead:
Speed limits limit life

1995hoo

Maryland state law allows speed cameras in work zones and in school zones. The law requires that you be allowed a 12-mph tolerance and there must be a "conspicuous" sign for a work zone that's photo-enforced.

I don't know whether there are any work zones right now on either I-81 or I-68, but the easiest thing to do is just to make sure you don't go 12 mph over the speed limit in any work zone in Maryland. Err on the slower side in case your speedometer is slightly off (also, I don't trust them to calibrate the cameras correctly).
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mgk920

Quote from: Truvelo on August 21, 2012, 02:55:01 PM
I don't know about the freeways but this article published today shows how stealth cameras are being set up disguised as mailboxes in Montgomery and Prince George Counties, MD and are raking in lots of $ :banghead:

How long before we start seeing these get either a little bit of paint, or perhaps even the gasoline-filled tire treatment?

:hmmm:

Mike

MASTERNC

Quote from: 1995hoo on August 21, 2012, 03:53:48 PM
Maryland state law allows speed cameras in work zones and in school zones. The law requires that you be allowed a 12-mph tolerance and there must be a "conspicuous" sign for a work zone that's photo-enforced.

I don't know whether there are any work zones right now on either I-81 or I-68, but the easiest thing to do is just to make sure you don't go 12 mph over the speed limit in any work zone in Maryland. Err on the slower side in case your speedometer is slightly off (also, I don't trust them to calibrate the cameras correctly).

From what I've seen in the news and on the program's website, there are no cameras on I-68 or I-81.  However, there will be cameras shortly on I-70 west of Hagerstown.  In addition, there will eventually be construction in Cumberland on I-68 that I expect would be a candidate as well.

MASTERNC

Well according to the DOT there will be two cameras on I-70 west of Hagerstown, beginning this fall, for two separate construction zones (though they are not very far apart).

cpzilliacus

Baltimore Sun: Circuit judge rules Baltimore Co. speed camera contract is illegal - Ruling could help others challenge citations in court

QuoteA Circuit Court judge has ruled that Baltimore County's contract with its speed camera vendor is illegal, because it pays the company a cut of each citation issued – a ruling that could help others challenge their citations in court.

QuoteWhile Judge Susan Souder's ruling dismissed only a single speed camera ticket, the opinion is believed to be the first time a judge has ruled against the legality of the so-called "bounty system," one of the most controversial elements of the law.

QuoteThe ruling could help other motorists fight speed camera tickets, even though it has no direct effect on other cases, said John A. Lynch Jr., a professor and associate dean at the University of Baltimore School of Law.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Baltimore Sun: Mayor's task force recommends speed camera reforms - Restricted media access urged for future panels

QuoteA task force studying Baltimore's troubled speed camera program will urge the city to increase oversight, change the way camera sites are selected and create a website containing maps and other information of interest to the public, according to draft recommendations released Wednesday.

QuoteA final report is expected to be presented in the next two weeks to Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake, who formed the task force last summer.

Quote"It's going to help us make a better program," acting Transportation Director Frank Murphy said. "We all want this to be a very successful program. We want it to be accurate and effective. We think these things will help us do that."
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cpzilliacus

Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

WTOP Radio: More areas consider using fake speed cameras

QuoteLAUREL, Md. - In a new twist on speed cameras, the City of Laurel introduced two fake cameras this week.

QuoteIn a story first reported by NBC 4, the two decoy boxes look just like the real cameras with police logos, except there is no actual camera inside.
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deathtopumpkins

Quote from: cpzilliacus on April 13, 2013, 08:08:38 PM
WTOP Radio: More areas consider using fake speed cameras

QuoteLAUREL, Md. - In a new twist on speed cameras, the City of Laurel introduced two fake cameras this week.

QuoteIn a story first reported by NBC 4, the two decoy boxes look just like the real cameras with police logos, except there is no actual camera inside.

Is that really significantly cheaper than using real cameras? Because if not, then I don't see the point of it.
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cpzilliacus

Quote from: deathtopumpkins on April 14, 2013, 01:25:03 PM
Is that really significantly cheaper than using real cameras? Because if not, then I don't see the point of it.

The City of Alexandria, Virginia (across the Potomac River from Prince George's County, where Laurel is located) has used (mostly) dummy red light camera units for many years, apparently to save some money  while still encouraging compliance.
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NJRoadfan

Quote from: cpzilliacus on April 14, 2013, 02:42:33 PM
The City of Alexandria, Virginia (across the Potomac River from Prince George's County, where Laurel is located) has used (mostly) dummy red light camera units for many years, apparently to save some money  while still encouraging compliance.

Isn't automated enforcement not permitted in VA?

deathtopumpkins

Quote from: NJRoadfan on April 14, 2013, 02:52:44 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on April 14, 2013, 02:42:33 PM
The City of Alexandria, Virginia (across the Potomac River from Prince George's County, where Laurel is located) has used (mostly) dummy red light camera units for many years, apparently to save some money  while still encouraging compliance.

Isn't automated enforcement not permitted in VA?

It is permitted. Virginia Beach and Newport News love red light cameras.




I actually like the idea of dummy cameras better than real cameras because they don't make a boatload of cash for the municipality while still encouraging compliance, but I don't see how they're better for the municipality, because they still cost some money to install and maintain (albeit less than a real camera) but they don't bring in any revenue.
Disclaimer: All posts represent my personal opinions and not those of my employer.

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vdeane

There's actually quite a bit of overhead to processing the tickets; many cities with red light camera contracts actually lose money on them due to the large cut the camera companies take.
Please note: All comments here represent my own personal opinion and do not reflect the official position of NYSDOT or its affiliates.

cpzilliacus

Quote from: vdeane on April 14, 2013, 05:43:21 PM
There's actually quite a bit of overhead to processing the tickets; many cities with red light camera contracts actually lose money on them due to the large cut the camera companies take.

I am not enthusiastic about private companies being in the business of law enforcement, including automated enforcement.  Seems to me that this is a "natural" public-sector job.
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cpzilliacus

Quote from: NJRoadfan on April 14, 2013, 02:52:44 PM
Quote from: cpzilliacus on April 14, 2013, 02:42:33 PM
The City of Alexandria, Virginia (across the Potomac River from Prince George's County, where Laurel is located) has used (mostly) dummy red light camera units for many years, apparently to save some money  while still encouraging compliance.

Isn't automated enforcement not permitted in VA?

Red light camera enforcement devices are allowed with certain conditions.

Speed cameras are forbidden across the entire Commonwealth.
Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

Brandon

Chicago Tribune: Xerox picked for red light camera program

QuoteA traffic camera company that lost its Baltimore contract earlier this year after acknowledging that its faulty equipment resulted in thousands of erroneous speeding tickets was named Tuesday as the preferred bidder to take over Chicago's scandal-ridden red light camera program.

Xerox State & Local Solutions Inc., based in Maryland, was picked unanimously by a seven-member selection committee in Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration, which will now enter contract negotiations with the company, the mayor's office said in an email to the Tribune.

Xerox would replace the city's current vendor, which is embroiled in a federal bribery investigation at City Hall following Tribune reports about an improper relationship between the city official who oversaw the $300 million program and executives of the company, Arizona-based Redflex Traffic Systems Inc.
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agentsteel53

gosh, how far has Xerox fallen from a company whose products could be used to make good old honest American counterfeit currency?
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NJRoadfan

Quote from: agentsteel53 on August 14, 2013, 10:50:49 AM
gosh, how far has Xerox fallen from a company whose products could be used to make good old honest American counterfeit currency?

Xerox through some key mergers has become "bloated government contractor". They don't have the market share they used to in copiers anymore. Most folks go with companies that actually service people these days.

cpzilliacus

Baltimore Sun: Mayor says speed cameras still not ready to issue tickets

QuoteSix months after Baltimore pulled its speed cameras offline amid accuracy concerns, the city's vendor still isn't ready to begin issuing tickets, Mayor Stephanie Rawlings-Blake said Wednesday.

QuoteRawlings-Blake said the city does not have a date when it will resurrect the program, which was North America's largest with more than 150 speed and red light cameras.

Quote"We want to make sure when they go back online, they go back online with accuracy, efficiency and consistency," Rawlings-Blake said. "The current vendor is not there yet."
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cpzilliacus

Baltimore Sun: Citywide accident rates rise during era of speed cameras - But Baltimore officials point out strong results in areas around devices

QuoteBaltimore experienced a nearly 5 percent increase in traffic accidents from 2009 to 2012 – a four-year span during which the city rolled out and ramped up its network of now-idle speed cameras, according to state police.

QuoteAccidents rose from 19,792 in 2009 to 20,718 in 2012, the city's highest total in nine years. Over those four years the city issued more than 1.5 million of the $40 tickets, with a stated purpose of improving safety by getting drivers to slow down in areas around schools.

QuoteCity transportation spokeswoman Adrienne Barnes played down the increase. She noted that crashes fell from 2009 to 2010 (by almost 4 percent), before rising. Speed camera enforcement began in November 2009, making 2010 the first full year with cameras. Barnes also said yearly city figures have not fluctuated much over the past 10 years.

QuoteBarnes also pointed to an analysis last December of six intersections with speed cameras and high accident rates. From 2009 to 2011, the number of accidents fell at each intersection, with decreases ranging from 3 percent to 42 percent. Barnes did not provide last year's figures.

Opinions expressed here on AAROADS are strictly personal and mine alone, and do not reflect policies or positions of MWCOG, NCRTPB or their member federal, state, county and municipal governments or any other agency.

cpzilliacus

Baltimore Sun: Baltimore moving to end latest speed camera contract - Brekford Corp. system still making mistakes, city says

QuoteIn the latest sign of turmoil for Baltimore's speed camera program, city officials are moving to sever ties with the vendor amid unresolved problems – an action that could idle the city's already mothballed speed and red-light camera system until the middle of next year.

QuoteSources familiar with discussions between the city and Brekford Corp. of Anne Arundel County said officials have grown increasingly frustrated with Brekford's mistakes in trying to revive the program, once North America's largest and the source of $50 million to the city since 2009 from speed cameras alone.

QuoteTests by the city have shown that 11 months after Brekford took over, the system is still troubled by inaccurate speed readings, incorrect addresses and tickets listing wrong information on how to pay a citation, city officials have said. Now officials are working to end the five-year contract, the sources said.
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