Red light cameras would benefit Kent

I just the read Kent Reporter article, “Committee Puts A Stop To Red Light Camera Ideas”, (Nov. 18 edition). The article stated that for the last six months people have been expressing their concerns to council member Jim Berrios about the number of cars running red lights.

Public Safety Committee members Les Thomas and Dana Ralph voted against asking staff to gather additional information. Wouldn’t it be a major concern for public safety members to have as much information as possible to make a decision on a matter of public safety?

There appeared to be discussions whether cameras really reduce accidents or not. Other cities concluded that it was undetermined whether red light cameras make intersections safe or not. One of the cities mentioned was Los Angeles. That might be the first time I have heard Kent being compared to Los Angeles in any type of study.

I recall reading about the money collected from speeding cameras in school zones in Kent School District last year. It appeared that those cameras were pretty self sufficient.

It is very obvious the number of red light runners are out of control. It is about to the point that you do not go when the light turns green. You go when the last red light runners have finished running lights. That is usually two or three vehicles on major intersections. Try not forgetting that, and you and your car will both last longer.

I am sure the traffic division of the police department does the best it can on controlling this issue. There are other issues that the traffic division could concentrate on if they had some relief from cameras.

Maybe if Thomas and Ralph had asked for “other information,” it would have shown the cameras would pay for themselves, not to mention safety. Isn’t that their job?

– Sid Faulkner