EVERETT – Your moving violation may have been captured on camera if you drove through a red light or sped in a school zone in late 2005.
But the electronic eyes snapping pictures and taking video of your car and license plate didn’t belong to Big Brother.
The two dozen cameras set up near schools and busy intersections were being demonstrated by Nestor Inc., one of several private firms vying to bring traffic cameras to Everett.
Everett recently unveiled plans to follow the lead of other cities in the state, such as Seattle and Lynnwood, which are turning to traffic cameras.
Had the demos in late 2005 been official, the lawbreakers would have received a $101 ticket in the mail with photos of the incident, following reviews by Nestor employees in Rhode Island and Everett police.
Also, the vehicle’s owner would have been given a chance to watch a video of the violation online.
“For me, it’s a safety issue,” said state Sen. Mary Margaret Haugen, D-Camano Island and chairwoman of the Senate Transportation Committee. She introduced legislation in 2005 that allowed cities to use automated cameras to issue tickets.
“It makes me comfortable that nobody is going to come crashing into me or someone I love. Cameras do change behavior,” she said.
Don’t expect cameras to stare down on Everett intersections overnight.
“We’re not in a big rush,” city engineer Ryan Sass said. A proposal to the City Council could be several months off.
City traffic experts will first study exactly where red-light cameras would be most effective.
Simply placing them at the most accident-prone intersections isn’t enough, Sass said. They’d have to be intersections where collisions caused by vehicles running red lights are frequent.
Everett also will take a closer look at other cities that have implemented traffic camera programs, Sass said.
There is often very little initial cost for municipalities, because contractors usually supply and maintain cameras for a flat monthly fee. Costs vary, but can run between $3,500 and $4,500 per intersection per month, said Janine Keblish with Nestor.
In Washington, companies that supply traffic cameras are not allowed to share in proceeds generated from the tickets they issue. Compensation must be based on the price of the equipment and running the system.
Parameters for the cameras, such as the exact speed at which a ticket is issued, would be set by the city, Sass said. Also, equipment can be tweaked to allow discretion when cars crawling through traffic are caught in an intersection between cycles.
Everett’s network would start with four key intersections and could expand to include more over time.
State law limits red-light cameras to intersections of two arterials, such as Broadway and Everett Avenue, and requires signs to inform people that cameras are in use.
It also prohibits the use of unmanned speed cameras outside school zones.
Everett Police Capt. Greg Lineberry said the school zone restriction makes speed cameras of limited use to law enforcement.
Having extra eyes to catch speeders elsewhere on residential streets would be more effective, he said.
“That’s where there is a greater community and safety interest,” he said. “But that’s going to require a change in state law to allow us to do that.”
Haugen said she wouldn’t object to legislation allowing speed cameras outside school zones, but said other lawmakers would likely reject such a bill.
She said an attempt was struck down last year in part because money collected for violations goes back into city coffers, raising concerns that some municipalities might use the cameras as speed traps to generate revenue.
Even so, city officials say excessive speed on city streets is a real safety problem.
Mayor Ray Stephanson carved out funds in his 2007-08 budget for a new dedicated traffic unit for the police department, which will have five motorcycle officers and one sergeant.
The police budget also set aside $212,000 for cameras – $50,000 devoted to speed cameras. The rest will be spent upgrading aging downtown crime-prevention cameras.
Lineberry said the use of traffic enforcement cameras will allow police to spend their time more efficiently.
“You only have so many officers and they can only be in so many areas,” he said.
Reporter David Chircop: 425-339-3429 or dchircop@heraldnet.com.
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