TheNewspaper.com Roundup: February 1, 2012


Each Wednesday, we’ll publish quick summaries of the articles from the last week on TheNewspaper.com. We’re doing this because these articles are often strongly connected to the issues that National Motorists Association members are interested in.

Wednesday, February 1, 2012
More Texas Cities Could See Red Light Camera Referendum
he effort to give voters a say in whether red light cameras are used in their community is spreading across Texas. Already, voters in College Station, Baytown, Houston and Dayton have rejected the use of automated ticketing machines. Yesterday the city council in League City voted to put the issue on the November ballot, and voters in Port Lavaca turned in sufficient signatures last week to force an election.

Tuesday, January 31, 2012
Kansas City, Missouri Red Light Cameras Increase Accidents
Red light camera vendor American Traffic Solutions (ATS) is furious that police in Kansas City, Missouri released a report last week evaluating photo enforcement intersections without giving the company a chance to modify the data. In many cities, ATS plays a key role in authoring such studies, but in this case the Kansas City police department went its own way, arriving at conclusions consistent with other, independent research on the topic.


Sunday, January 29, 2012
Australia, Italy: Lightning, Shotguns Blast Speed Cameras
Lightning destroyed a Australian speed camera and a shotgun destroyed Italian photo radar.

Friday, January 27, 2012
South Carolina Legislature Shuts Door on Photo Enforcement
The South Carolina legislature put the final nail in the coffin of photo enforcement earlier this month. Both the state House and Senate last year had unanimously approved legislation making it clear that automated ticketing machines were illegal in the state. As part of a compromise, state Senator Tom Davis (R-Beaufort) dropped his opposition to the bill in exchange for the creation of the South Carolina Traffic Enforcement Commission, which he hoped would draft a report he could use to convince his colleagues to give photo ticketing a second chance.

Thursday, January 26, 2012
Peer Reviewed Study Questions IIHS Red Light Camera Report
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) grabbed headlines last February with a self-published study claiming installation of red light cameras nationwide would have prevented 815 deaths. The Florida Public Health Review, a peer-reviewed journal, published a systematic critique yesterday that found the methods used in the IIHS report were sloppy and inconsistent, reflecting a bias towards the insurance industry that IIHS serves.

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