The problem with cameras

The problem with cameras

You have to give some of the proponents of traffic cameras in Warren credit for honesty.

They said right up front why they want to invite cameras into their city: cameras make money.

In Girard, city fathers pretended to the end that their cameras were all about slowing down the speeders. As we pointed out at the time, if that were the case, the city would have put up billboards at entry points warning motorists that they could be on camera. Instead, they attached tiny notices beneath other street signs.

The United States has had a proven system for dealing with traffic violators since the day traffic laws were written. Sworn police officers patrol the streets watching for violators. They stop and cite violators and the violators then go to court, where they have the opportunity to defend themselves. If found guilty, they pay the price.

That’s the American way.

Roads paved of gold

Inviting a private company into town to split the take with the city for tickets issued to the owners of cars caught on camera is the kind of privatization of law enforcement that should give residents and city officials pause. And the fact that the city expects multiple proposals from private companies eager to charge speeders a minimum of $150 for exceeding the limit, and $250 for anyone exceeding the speed limit by 12 mph, is proof that those companies know there is money to be made.

One city councilman sees that money as the answer to the city’s fiscal problems. But it’s money that will come directly out of the pockets of Warren residents, or visitors to the city. And for every dollar the city gets, the company owning the cameras will get one.

Warren’s city fathers should be worried about the backlash they’ll get from their own citizens. And they should think about the number of visitors who will find reasons not to drive into the city if the cameras go up.

There are no quick and easy answers to traffic enforcement or to balancing a city’s budget, and those who think that traffic cameras are the answer to both problems are kidding themselves.