Red-light cameras survived a close call in the Florida Legislature, thanks in part to big contributions from one of the major vendors of the technology.
Just a year after the state approved use of the controversial cameras, lawmakers attempted to yank them down. The House narrowly approved a camera ban, 59-57, but the bill (HB 4087) never got a hearing in the Senate.
The Senate's own version, SB 672, stalled in Sen. Mike Bennett's Community Affairs Committee and died there.
Red-light cameras, which take pictures of violators and issue tickets, have been hailed as the silver bullet to reduce accidents at intersections. The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office reported that intersection accidents there declined from 395 in 2008 to 270 last year.
But, citing other research, opponents say there are better, less costly ways to improve safety.
The repeal bill's sponsor, Rep. Richard Corcoran, R-New Port Richey, called the camera law a money-maker for the manufacturers that contract with local governments.
And some of that cash flowed to lawmakers and Florida's two major political parties.
American Traffic Solutions, a leading vendor of red-light cameras, donated $142,000 to the Republican Party of Florida in the last two years. The Democratic Party of Florida received $37,500 last year alone.
In addition, ATS made $500 donations (the maximum allowable) to 15 GOP and Democratic House members.
Though ATS' largess didn't pay off in the House, Bennett and GOP leadership held fast in the Senate, refusing to move SB 672 or vote on the House measure.
Groused one critic: "A few elected representatives in the state of Florida decided to sell your safety."
Bennett did not respond to Sunshine State News' request for comment.
Opposition to red-light cameras was led by tea partiers and libertarians, as well as privacy-rights groups and traffic engineers who downplayed the technology as an accident deterrent.
Researchers at the University of South Florida have produced several papers contending that longer yellow lights are better at improving safety. Georgia communities have reported that extending the yellow interval reduced infractions by 80 percent.
But steadily expanding numbers of cities and counties across the country have come to view red-light cameras as a safety device, as well as a potentially lucrative revenue source.
In the first quarter of 2011, 10 cities in Florida, Colorado, Missouri and New Jersey signed contracts with ATS to install and maintain more than 100 red-light and speed-safety cameras. The two latest additions in Florida are Plantation and Davie in South Florida.
Scottsdale, Ariz.-based ATS got a jump on the Florida market when it installed and operated red-light cameras in the city of Aventura in early 2010 -- before the state allowed photo ticketing.
Citing the absence of an enabling law, a Miami-Dade judge halted the cameras. But the program got the green light when the 2010 Legislature passed the Mark Wandall Law, named for a Bradenton man who was killed by a red-light runner.
A staff analysis projected the law could generate $160.5 million in annual revenue, with $94.8 million going to the state and $65.7 million to municipalities.
Alex Snitker, the Libertarian Party's 2010 candidate for U.S. Senate, says that's blood money -- and he decried the corporate cash peddling in Tallahassee.
Recently, the Florida Libertarian radio program and website, www.1787network.com, warned of a vicious cycle of increasingly dangerous roads in a drive for more ticket revenue:
"When the revenue target isnt achieved, the municipality contacts the camera company with the bad news. The solution to getting more violations with red-light cameras is to shorten the yellow light time. Its happened time and again.
"When the yellow light time doesnt allow a vehicle traveling at the speed limit to come to a gradual stop, we have to use increased braking in order to avoid winning the overpriced picture contest. As a result, the number of rear-end collisions increases."
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Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 801-5341.
