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Youngstown police chief seeks traffic cameras near schools
The cameras would not be utilized to make money, a city councilwoman says.
YOUNGSTOWN — Traffic cameras could be in use by the city as soon as early next year to catch speeders near schools and possibly in other parts of Youngstown in the future.
City council members support a proposal from police Chief Jimmy Hughes to make a deal with a company to place cameras by schools.
“We want to utilize them to reduce crime and increase safety,” Hughes said.
ACS Government Solutions, a Washington, D.C., company, gave a presentation Wednesday to council’s safety committee about its traffic cameras. Sometime this month or in December, officials from two other companies will propose the city use their services.
The cameras would film vehicles driving by schools — Youngstown State University is not included — and monitor the speeds of motorists in school zones, said Councilwoman Annie Gillam, D-1st and safety committee chairwoman, and Councilman John R. Swierz, D-7th, a committee member.
“It’s basically for safety,” Gillam said. “This is not a money thing. This is a safety thing.”
The cameras could be operating during the first three months of 2010, if everything goes smoothly, Swierz said.
There haven’t been many accidents on and/or near school grounds, but there are problems with speeders in school zones, Gillam, Swierz and Hughes said.
“There may not be accidents, but there is speeding going on” by schools, Swierz said.
If the city moves ahead with the traffic cameras, it would receive about 65 percent to 75 percent of the revenue generated from speeding fees with the company selected receiving the rest, Hughes said.
Those caught speeding on camera wouldn’t be charged with a moving violation; it would be considered a civil matter, he said.
The company chosen by the city wouldn’t charge a fee for Youngstown to use the cameras, Hughes said.
Besides the revenue split, other issues would need to be resolved before a company could be hired.
They include: the fine amount, how fast a motorist could go over the speed limit to be in violation, where the cameras would go, and would they be stationary or moved around, Hughes and the council members say.
Proposals for traffic cameras in Warren and Niles were made and never implemented largely because of residents’ opposition.
Girard used a mobile camera in 2005, suspending the practice in mid-2006 pending a court ruling on whether it was legal to use it. The judge ruled in the city’s favor, but Girard didn’t bring back the camera.
“There has been controversy,” Swierz said of traffic cameras. “We aren’t looking at this as a money maker. But if you don’t speed, you won’t get a ticket.”
Gillam said she opposes using the cameras in any other location but by schools.
But Swierz and particularly Hughes are interested in expanding their use. Swierz is open to using cameras in places with many vehicular accidents.
Additional cameras could help police solve serious crimes if they tape criminal activity, Hughes said. “We hope to utilize them at special events and hot spots” for crime, he said.
“We can gather intelligence on other crimes. It may record information about a murder or other serious crimes.”