Another Arizona city is taking down their unpopular automated ticketing camera system.
This time it’s the Phoenix suburb of Mesa, which has a population of more than 400,000 residents. American Traffic Solutions has been issuing scamera tickets in Mesa intersections and via mobile devices since 2006. Their driver-distracting cameras and illegally parked radar vans are no longer welcome in the city after the Public Safety Committee voted to not renew the contract.
In 2011, a similar LAPD panel in Los Angeles voted to kick American Traffic Solutions out of that city as well. The main reasons given by the panel were that accidents had increased and most people who were sent the wallet-busting $500 citations by ATS simply ignored them.
It’s no surprise that Mesa would follow suit, given the public outcry about confusing intersection lines and the loss of due process. On the panel’s recommendation, the cameras will be torn out in 2014.
Mesa can look forward to their intersections being free from a private company with a profit motive spying on every motorist passing through.
Last summer residents spoke out on local news about the chaotic situation and uneven law enforcement for drivers:
No words from the ATS sockpuppets yet about their ouster. But it’s easy to assume their legal team and internet shills are going to play their typical games with the media.
They already own countless city council members, mayors and state legislators so it only makes sense that the scamera lobby would want to move on up and buy themselves a brand new Congressman as well.
Given Ben Quayle’s penchant for posting photos all over the web for Nik Richie’s Dirty Scottsdale under an assumed identity, photo fraud vendors Redflex and American Traffic Solutions (ATS) were a perfect fit for campaign financiers to the little internet prankster turned Congressman.
George, “The Hitman” Hittner, executive general counsel of the mafia-like corporate leech, ATS (owned by Goldman Sachs), has thrown his support behind Quayle. Redflex’s Jay Heiler has been Quayle’s spokesman since his 2010 Congressional campaign.
Arizona should really be proud to be represented by such a creepy guy, who once faked having a family, just to seem somewhat normal compared to his internet persona, “Brock Landers.” Brock (also the name of a character from the almost-porn flick Boogie Nights) spent day and night posting pictures of women at Scottsdale night clubs in various stages of intoxication and undress.
Don’t let Brock, err Ben fool you, those days of what some conservatives in Arizona call “internet porn” really prepared him to be a “responsible adult” and cosponsor the SOPA bill which would shut down any website at the drop of a hat if the almighty DOJ didn’t fancy its content. One wonders if Ben’s old buddy Nik would get a pass even though he outed him 2 years ago. At least Nik was kind enough to wait until most of the early ballots had been returned so it wouldn’t cost Brock Ben the election.
The CameraFRAUD meetup group was mentioned in this piece by Time Magazine’s “Moneyland.”
With bills like SCR 1029 making their way through state legislatures in Arizona, Iowa, Colorado and Florida to name a few in 2012, the citizen backlash is being felt by politicians everywhere on the state level.
People place blind trust that the governments responsible for determining speed limits are qualified and have conducted a proper analysis to arrive at the correct number. Many firmly believe that driving even just a little above the posted limit can be indeed be extremely dangerous. But this new video on Youtube shows that posted speed limits we see are sometimes nothing more than the result of a political whim, as in the city of Peoria, AZ the limits are established by ordinances that are established by the city council. Although difficult to see, the video shows a roadway in North Peoria, the stretch of Pinnacle Peak between 83rd Ave & 91st Ave where speed limits are set for 30mph going Westbound, but 45 going eastbound. There is no discernible difference in each side of the road (low density residential with no schools or school crossing), and the road is one lane in each direction. What could the engineering justification possibly be to call for a 15mph difference in speed limits based only on what direction you’re going? The only reasonable answer is that the city wants to create a speed trap.
The video also shows another location just south of Happy Valley Road on 91st Ave. As you approach the 3-way intersection, the last 1/8 of a mile drops from 40mph to 30mph. When you turn from Happy Valley onto 91st Ave southbound, you can go 45mph for the 1st 1/8th mile, then the limit drops to 30mph for about 3/8 of a mile, then raises up to a standard 40mph limit. Again, there are no schools and no discernible changes in road design or neighborhoods over these distances. These limits are nothing more than a speed trap, and nothing more than city officials screwing with drivers.
[Since most citizens can be relied upon to behave in a reasonable manner as they go about their daily activities, many of our laws reflect observations of the way reasonable people behave under most circumstances. Traffic regulations are invariably based upon observations of the behavior of groups of travelers under various conditions.
[Generally speaking, traffic laws that reflect the behavior of the majority of vehicle operators are found to be successful, while laws that arbitrarily restrict the majority of drivers encourage wholesale violations, lack public support, and usually fail to bring about desirable changes in driving behavior. This is especially true of speed zoning.]
ADOT continues to explain that reducing speed limits will NOT change traffic speeds and will not change accident frequency and that there is no “direct relationship between posted speed limits and accident frequency” and that, “speed in itself is not a major cause of accidents.” ADOT then proceeds to identify such locations as those described in North Peoria as a speed trap:
[It is accepted within the traffic engineering profession that there is a demonstrated need to produce as much uniformity as possible in the traffic flow and to eliminate the so-called speed trap. A speed trap may be defined as a street or road which is wide enough, straight and smooth enough, and sufficiently free of visibility limiting obstructions to permit driving a certain speed, but where the law nevertheless calls for a much lower speed.]
According to ADOT, “Speed zoning in Arizona is based on the widely accepted principle of setting speed limits as near as practicable to the speed at or below which 85 percent of the drivers are traveling.” But after spending a few minutes on the side of the road at either of these locations one can clearly see that the 85th percentile speed is closer to 40 or 45mph (common on Phoenix-area arterial roads) than the 30mph displayed on the speed limit signs.
So why is the city of Peoria so careless about road safety? There are only a few possible answers:
Arrogant and/or incompetent city council who either believes they are qualified traffic engineers or that they know more than traffic engineers.
They have allowed incompetent city traffic engineers to remain employed.
They are more interested in revenue generation from speed traps than safety.
For clues to the answer, we can look to other city council decisions. Over 3 years ago, Peoria started a pilot red light camera program at 4 intersections. The results were disastrous, leading to over a 100% increase in accidents. But for some reason (read: $$$), the city decided to renew and extend the “pilot” program multiple times (guess they don’t understand what you’re supposed to do when a pilot program fails). Finally after 3 years and continued disastrous results, the city reluctantly ended the dangerous cash cow red light camera program after being unable to justify the program under the guise of safety any longer.
But the city of Peoria isn’t alone in the world of dubious traffic engineering. Take the new stretch of 303 West of I-17 for example. This is brand new freeway, 2 lanes in each direction separated by a significant distance. This stretch has very few on and off ramps, and very little traffic. Yet the speed limit is only 55mph! Contrast this to the 101 freeway which has a great deal of traffic and is usually crowded, on and off ramps every 1 mile, and the limit is 10mph faster. I don’t think you have to be an engineer to know that the new stretch of 303 freeway is every bit as safe as the 101, if not safer. So why the lower limits?
Arizona Revised Statutes, Section 28-702 allows the establishment of speed limits on the State Highway System “upon the basis of an engineering and traffic investigation.” The MUTCD also requires a traffic engineering study. So where is this engineering and traffic investigation that found a speed limit of 55mph to be appropriate on the 303 but not on the 101?
State and local governments have become lazy, arrogant, and exploitative. They have forgotten that their purpose is to serve the people and do what’s in the best interest for the public rather than the government. ADOT’s own literature contradicts their actions and appears to violate state law. This isn’t about safety. It’s about what it’s always about: power and money.
Nobody who’s paying attention is going to pretend the US economy is in good shape, nor has it been since 2007.
In Green Cove, Florida a retiree was not only sent one of these scam tickets, but was charged extra just to fight it in court.
What a racket they have going out there in North Florida. From the news report below by First Coast News, it sounds like the cameras are on the way to even more communities.
Will the citizens of Green Cove say enough is enough?
Every motorist in Texas is now exempt from photo tickets from speed cameras, red light cameras and toll road enforcement cameras, starting January 1st, 2012.Texas legislature left a key provision out of the latest version of their Transportation Omnibus Bill that penalizes drivers for not visibly displaying a license plate on their vehicle, reports TheNewspaper.com. [BILL]Once this bill becomes law, it cannot be changed for two years because Texas Legislature only convenes every other year.[READ MORE]
What happens when cities (predictably) ignore elections?
What happens when their police departments illegally arrest activists – repeatedly – for daring to speak out against rampant surveillance and inappropriate corporate control over entire municipalities?
What happens when entire state governments are unable or unwilling to listen to the will of the people regarding foreign corporations who base their revenue expectations on mail fraud and phony tickets?
What happens when government considers mere movement a privilege instead of an inherent right?
They get painfully exposed by CameraFRAUD.
Again.
New tools. New Features. New Websites —Coming Soon.
LA residents will enjoy safer intersections starting August 2011!
The big one is coming. Los Angeles City Council will overwhelmingly vote to end the red light camera program…. this week!
The formalities are mind-numbing, but they’re going to come quickly this week after the inevitable was delayed by some lame-brained scheming courtesy of American Traffic Solutions CEO Jim Tuton.
The betrayal is complete. A two-faced mayor, completely corrupted judge and litigious organized crime operation (American Traffic Solutions) have come together to thwart an election.
As of midnight central time, red light scameras in Houston are back on and tickets will begin to be mailed out this week.
The proposed additional red light cameras, sold to us by criminals, are going nowhere. Can we hurry up and take the rest down, Phoenix?
Now we know why Phoenix City Council would not give CameraFRAUD volunteers or even local media a straight answer about the proposed addition to red light cameras.
While a few city council members like Thelda Williams, Bill Gates and Michael Nowakowski told our members that they were in favor of the scameras and wanted the city to add more, most were silent on the issue.
RT @APompliano: Fidelity set up an internal crypto fund last year and funded it off the balance sheet.
The virus has infiltrated the large… 4 years ago
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CameraFRAUD.com - The Cameras are Coming Down 