Suffolk County red-light camera program ending Dec. 1 after 14 years

Fourteen years and more than $ 289 million in fines and associated charges after its very first cam was set up, Suffolk County’s red-light cam program is pertaining to an end Dec. 1.

The automated enforcement program has actually long stirred argument, with advocates indicating decreases in major crashes and casualties as proof of the program’s worth. Nevertheless, challengers have actually questioned other elements of security, mentioning a boost in rear-end crashes. Some have actually called the program– which netted the county about $13 million in 2015– a “money grab” by the county.

There are 216 red-light cam systems at 100 crossways in Suffolk, which were utilized to release approximately 980 tickets– at $50 each– each day in 2023, according to county information. The specialist is Canada-based Modaxo, which purchased the subsidiary that manages the agreement from New Jersey-based Conduent previously this year.

In the end, the program fizzled with a whimper after state and county legislators stopped working to take actions to extend it beyond Dec. 1, though Nassau’s program will stay active.

The ending of Suffolk’s program is not straight associated to Wednesday’s court judgment that Nassau’s collection of additional charges– which are $ 100 on top of the $50 base fine– are unlawful. The appellate department court ruled that the charges, which Suffolk likewise utilized to gather up until 2023, oppose state law.

For responses to your concerns about why the program is ending, its security record and what occurs next, continue reading.

Why is the program ending?

An extension of the program would have needed approval from the Suffolk County Legislature in addition to from the State Legislature– all in an election year.

While Assemb. Fred W. Thiele Jr. (D-Sag Harbor) sponsored an extension expense in the state Assembly, nobody from Suffolk’s Senate delegation– that includes 4 Republicans and one Democrat– proposed an extension before the last legal session ended in June.

Extending the program likewise would have needed a “home guideline message” by the county legislature. Legis. Kevin McCaffrey (R-Lindenhurst), the legislature’s administering officer, informed Newsday he and his associates didn’t present a home guideline message since there was no expense in the State Senate, just in the Assembly.

What’s the security record?

Suffolk’s crossways with the video cameras experienced an 11.3% decrease in mishaps including injuries in the years after setup, according to county information launched in 2020. Although that information does not distinguish in between deadly injuries and other types, a county-commissioned research study by an independent engineering seeking advice from business discovered a decrease in deadly mishaps at crossways with video cameras in Suffolk in the program’s early years — matching across the country research studies showing red-light video cameras have actually conserved lives.

Nevertheless, general mishaps in fact increased by 8.6%, mainly since of a 47.7% spike in rear-end mishaps after the video cameras were set up, according to Suffolk County information.

Alec Slatky, director of public and federal government affairs at AAA Northeast, stated while AAA supports red-light video cameras in basic, their security efficiency depends significantly on how and where programs are carried out.

Rear-end mishaps are typically triggered by individuals braking all of a sudden to prevent a red-light ticket, according to Slatky. Due to the fact that red-light video cameras work at minimizing right-angled crashes– which are most likely to trigger major injuries– they ought to just be set up at crossways with that issue, he stated.

” You … actually need to take a look at it crossway by crossway. Are crashes increasing at a specific crossway? Are they decreasing at a specific crossway? … We desire the authorities to be taking a look at the crash information actually carefully,” Slatky stated.

In addition to appropriate positioning, it’s likewise essential to enhance signal exposure and make sure lights are timed efficiently, he kept in mind.

McCaffrey stated Suffolk’s cam program was carried out with insufficient concentrate on security. He mentioned as an example Great East Neck Roadway’s crossway with State Path 109 in West Babylon, which saw a boost in all kinds of mishaps– consisting of those including injuries– after video cameras were set up, according to county information.

” These are kinds of things that you require to take a look at and state, ‘Hey, perhaps these aren’t the very best places, since they’re doing more damage than great,'” McCaffrey stated, including, “I’m not opposed to the program, if it’s done right.”

Just how much have individuals paid?

Suffolk generated $289.6 million in gross income from the red-light cam program in between 2013 and 2023, according to its yearly report on the program. In 2023, it took in an approximated $18.7 million and paid the supplier around $5.6 million for the program.

McCaffrey stated the county’s choice to raise real estate tax this year wasn’t the direct outcome of the cam program’s death, keeping in mind the program’s incomes have actually fallen because 2023, when a $30 administration charge per ticket was removed by the legislature.

However he kept in mind the lost income is “still a considerable quantity of cash, and it’s something that we need to find out.”

What about Nassau’s program?

Nassau legislators voted to continue their county’s red-light cam program this year.

Red-light tickets in Nassau expense vehicle drivers $150, and the county took in $64 million in gross income in 2022. Nevertheless, the current court choice– which Nassau and Suffolk counties might still attempt to appeal — states that charges beyond a $50 fine and $25 late charge are unlawful.

A 2022 report by the county suggested its video cameras were more reliable at avoiding crashes than Suffolk’s. Right-angled crashes plunged 76% and rear-end crashes fell 4% at red-light cam crossways in Nassau in 2022, compared to a three-year average before the video cameras were set up in 2009, authorities composed. Mishaps including injuries come by 33%, the report stated.

There was one casualty at a red-light cam crossway in 2022 and 5 in 2021, county records suggest.

In addition to Nassau, legislators in Albany voted to significantly broaden New york city City’s red-light cam program and to extend other programs in White Plains, Albany, Mount Vernon, Yonkers and New Rochelle. The Town of Greenburgh has actually likewise started a totally brand-new program.

What occurs next?

Unless state legislators go back to Albany for an unique session and vote to restore the program before completion of the year, Suffolk will no longer be licensed to release tickets utilizing red-light video cameras after Dec. 1. The problem might resurface next year after the State Legislature returns in January.

It is uncertain what will take place to the cam devices in the instant consequences. According to county authorities, the video cameras are owned by the supplier; Modaxo did not react to Newsday’s emailed concerns.

Neither Suffolk County Executive Edward P. Romaine’s workplace nor the Suffolk County Authorities Department reacted to Newsday’s composed concerns about strategies after the video cameras turned off. A Romaine representative referred the concerns to the county legislature.

Legis. Jason Richberg (D-West Babylon), the minority leader in the county legislature, stated the county requires to adjust by welcoming other security methods to lower traffic deaths.

” I comprehend folks’ grievances about [the red-light camera program] being a cash grab. … My retort would be, what other obstacles can we put in to suppress aggressive driving? … What do we change it with?” he stated.

McCaffrey stated he does not dismiss reviving a red-light cam program in the future, if the focus was altered.

” Our issue here has to do with security of the homeowners, and I believe this program escaped that, and it ended up being more about income generation than public security,” he stated. “I would just support it if it returned with the focus being on security and not about income.”