With the red-light camera ordinance being voted down this past week, each of the councilmen gave their opinions on the matter.
The suggested camera system would have been installed at some of Hinesville’s busy intersections to document and ticket drivers who were running red lights, and 25 percent of those violation funds would have gone to the city’s budget, city manager Billy Edwards said.
The vote on this ordinance was delayed for more than a month, and during that time, Edwards compiled a report consisting of accident information and safety statistics to give the councilmen a better idea of how the cameras would affect the traffic in Hinesville.
From this report, Councilman Charles Frasier deduced the implementation of the cameras would have decreased side-impact wrecks (which are more lethal), but they would have increased rear-end collisions. And for this reason alone, he voted down the ordinance.
Councilman Steve Troha said, “It would be a great benefit to the Hinesville Police Department, and I ask these gentlemen to do the right thing.”
“The data does suggest that there is an increase in rear end collisions, but the same data also suggests that the rear-end accidents level off and also decrease with the side impact crashes as drivers become accustomed to the system,” he said.
HPD Chief George Stagmeier agreed with Troha’s comments asvboth of them had been working for this ordinance for the past two years.
“When I looked at the studies, they suggested that the number of red light violators and side impact crashes would go down, which would increase the safety of motorists and pedestrians, and the safety issue is what we were principally concerned with,” he said.
But Stagmeier said he follows the wishes of the city council, and he trusts their decision in the matter.
“I could see using the cameras for surveillance purposes to help solve criminal investigations, or to discern who may have caused a traffic accident, but I just don’t see this benefiting the city,” councilman David Anderson said.
Councilman Jack Shuman said he based his vote partly on the opinion of the people in his district who were overwhelmingly against the cameras.
The suggested camera system would have been installed at some of Hinesville’s busy intersections to document and ticket drivers who were running red lights, and 25 percent of those violation funds would have gone to the city’s budget, city manager Billy Edwards said.
The vote on this ordinance was delayed for more than a month, and during that time, Edwards compiled a report consisting of accident information and safety statistics to give the councilmen a better idea of how the cameras would affect the traffic in Hinesville.
From this report, Councilman Charles Frasier deduced the implementation of the cameras would have decreased side-impact wrecks (which are more lethal), but they would have increased rear-end collisions. And for this reason alone, he voted down the ordinance.
Councilman Steve Troha said, “It would be a great benefit to the Hinesville Police Department, and I ask these gentlemen to do the right thing.”
“The data does suggest that there is an increase in rear end collisions, but the same data also suggests that the rear-end accidents level off and also decrease with the side impact crashes as drivers become accustomed to the system,” he said.
HPD Chief George Stagmeier agreed with Troha’s comments asvboth of them had been working for this ordinance for the past two years.
“When I looked at the studies, they suggested that the number of red light violators and side impact crashes would go down, which would increase the safety of motorists and pedestrians, and the safety issue is what we were principally concerned with,” he said.
But Stagmeier said he follows the wishes of the city council, and he trusts their decision in the matter.
“I could see using the cameras for surveillance purposes to help solve criminal investigations, or to discern who may have caused a traffic accident, but I just don’t see this benefiting the city,” councilman David Anderson said.
Councilman Jack Shuman said he based his vote partly on the opinion of the people in his district who were overwhelmingly against the cameras.