Newport News still deliberating on red-light cameras

Feb. 19--Depending on who you ask, Newport News' red-light cameras at three busy intersections are either safety tools or crash producers.

Advocates and critics both may be correct.

Newport News Master Police Officer Marty Scott believes the system saves lives.

"The serious crashes have gone down," at the camera-monitored intersections at which Mercury Boulevard, Oyster Point Road and Denbigh Boulevard cross Jefferson Avenue, he said. Scott is one of two officers who reviews potential violations captured on photos and video by the system before citations are issued.

"Rear-enders are up, but serious injuries and fatals are down," he added. Before the cameras were installed, there were 81 rear-end collisions at the three intersections. Afterward, there were 96, each over a two-year period, according to Jan. 10, 2013 report by the city traffic engineers.

But critics question the effectiveness of the system. The Wisconsin-based National Motorists Association, an advocacy group, opposes their use in statements on its website, saying they cause crashes and inconvenience drivers. J.J. Bahen, who compiled a report for the advocacy group, agreed in a recent letter to the Virginia House Transportation Committee in support of repealing the state's red-light camera law. Bahen said the cameras increase collisions.

The city's traffic engineers say the data collected supports both Scott's and the Bahen's contentions.

Engineering director Everett Skipper echoed Scott, saying the city has seen more rear-end collisions at the intersections since the cameras were installed in 2010, but fewer serious collisions. He called the statistics "kind of marginal," and said the city renewed its contract with Redflex in June 2013 to gather one more year of data to determine the program's effectiveness.

Bump in crash statistics

Scott is a member of the department's crash team and investigates fatal collisions. He said fatalities have dropped at the three intersections since 2010, and he attributes that in part to the cameras. Scott said the system is not designed to punish drivers, "it's to curb behavior."

He and police department spokesman Lou Thurston said the data shows an uptick in rear-end collisions, but he attributes that to aggressive driving.

But Bahen said he is concerned about the increase in rear-end collisions, which he attributes to drivers' concerns about receiving a citation. A driver is more likely to hit the brakes quickly, setting in motion a chain reaction, he said.

Skipper said the increase in rear-end collisions was expected, but the engineering department has noted a decline in angle accidents, such as T-bones, that cause extensive injury and damage.

The city's report compares collisions two years before and after the cameras were installed and supports Skipper's claim.

The report states that the total number of collisions increased by 6 percent on camera-monitored lanes at the three intersections after the system was installed, but crashes directly related to running a red light in those lanes decreased by 50 percent.

Jefferson Avenue and Oyster Point Road was the intersection with the highest volume and highest number of collisions, with 53 total crashes in the two years before the cameras were installed and 59 in the years after. The greatest bump was in rear-end crashes, from 33 to 42. The number of right-angle, or T-bone collisions dropped from 4 to 3.

Jefferson Avenue and Mercury Boulevard posted the second highest totals, and the number of collisions dropped from 56 before the cameras were installed to 53 after. The number of rear-end collisions increased from 30 to 32, and the number of T-bone collisions went up, from 5 to 11.

Denbigh Boulevard and Jefferson Avenue had the fewest collisions with 38 before the cameras and 39 after. The number of T-bone collisions dropped, 9 to 6, but the number of rear-enders bumped from 18 to 22.

Skipper said the numbers were close to expectations, but were inconclusive. "We're still evaluating," he said.

Company in controversy

The city decided in 2008 to install a red-light camera system to "gain compliance with traffic signals, which will significantly contribute to public safety," according to its website. By law, Newport News is eligible for up to 18 cameras, but officials said they chose the three intersections because they had the highest accident rates, the highest rates of red light infractions and because police officers had difficulty issuing citations.

"There were times we had to let violators go because it was not safe to follow them and pull them over," Scott said.

Redflex was one of five companies to submit proposals to install and manage a red-light system in the city in 2008, with the goal of improving traffic safety. The city awarded the Phoenix-based company a three-year contract in 2009 for its Photo Safe system.

Redflex has managed Virginia Beach's red-light camera system since 2009 and also handles systems for Richmond, Norfolk, Chesapeake and Albermarle County.

Aaron Rosenberg, a former executive vice president with the company, signed the contract with Newport News, but he was fired in 2013 after an internal company investigation uncovered a bribery scheme associated with Chicago's red-light camera system, which Redflex operated. Rosenberg counter-sued Redflex, and in court documents said company employees had bribed local officials in 13 states in efforts to secure contracts. Virginia was among the states named. The Chicago Tribune reported the allegations in late January; city and county officials in Virginia denied being offered or accepting bribes.

"We didn't take any bribes," said Newport News spokeswoman Kim Lee. "We were not tempted with bribes."

Redflex also issued statements countering Rosenberg's claim. According to company spokeswoman Jody Ryan, Redflex "denies the allegations ... from Aaron Rosenberg."

City officials have not said whether they will renew the contract with Redflex when it is up in June.

How it works

In the meantime, Redflex cameras monitor traffic in two directions at the three intersections. The cameras are constantly video recording the flow of traffic, but the red-light photos are triggered when drivers enter the intersection after a traffic signal turns red, crossing over sensors embedded in a white line. By law, the red light must be on for at least half a second before a photo is taken. All of the intersections also have a two-second interval during which all signal lights are red, said Skipper and Scott.

Scott said the photos first go through a quality review process at Redflex, and about 40 percent are rejected there. Scott or another officer then goes over the remaining photos, checking for potential infractions.

"Essentially we use the same criteria we would use to pull someone over for a citation," he said.

For example, if a driver has stopped on or just past the white line, Scott will reject the infraction and no citation will be issued. "If a driver stops, I don't care," he said. "We use some common sense."

Officers also check the timing of the yellow signal light to ensure it meets the state law's criteria, and they make sure the red light is on for half a second before the camera snaps a photo.

"They have to throw it out if it does not meet the technical criteria," said city spokeswoman Lee.

Scott said on some days he rejects more potential citations than he approves.

If the officer rejects the violation, it is completely removed from the system, Scott said. If the reviewing officer determines that the potential infraction warrants a citation, he approves it. Redflex then takes over and issues the citation and collects the fine.

"The only reason the police department is involved is because the law says the photos must be reviewed by a sworn police officer," said Thurston.

Not a cash cow

Scott echoed other city officials in saying the program "is not a money maker." The contract stipulates that Redflex receives a $4,740 monthly fee per approach, adjusted annually for inflation, and taken from the revenues generated by the $50 fines.

By law, unlike citations a motorist might receive from a police officer for the same infraction, the citations associated with the red-light camera system are not reported to the state Department of Motor Vehicles or insurance companies. The citations also are less expensive, said Scott, noting that officer-issued citations "would cost $100 to $150."

After Redflex deducts its fee, the rest goes to the city, Lee said.

Since 2011, the city has received $993,233 in revenue from Redflex. The money does not go to either the police or engineering department, Skipper and Scott said. Instead, the revenue goes into the city's general fund.

Scott and Thurston said the police department is seeing fewer repeat offenders at the intersections, and if the number of citations decreases, revenue also will drop. "We don't treat this as an intended revenue generator," Skipper said.

City spokeswoman Lee said Newport News is nearing the end of the one-year extension of Redflex's contract. So far, no one has recommended expanding the program to include other intersections.

Scott and Thurston said they hope the city continues the red-light camera system, but Skipper said future action depends on other officials. He hopes to present a new report with an additional year of data to the City Council later this spring.

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