City achieves zero fatality 25-year milestone

For the first time in 25 years, no deaths occurred as the result of a traffic crash in Jackson, Tennessee, the city announced at a news conference yesterday.
February 2, 2012 Read time: 2 mins

For the first time in 25 years, no deaths occurred as the result of a traffic crash in Jackson, Tennessee, the city announced at a news conference yesterday. In 2006, the year the Jackson Police Department began using 17 American Traffic Solutions’ (ATS) technology-based systems to enforce traffic laws, 12 people were killed. In 2007 the number was reduced by half to six and halved again to three in 2008. Last year there were no fatalities due to traffic collisions.

According to Police Chief, Gill Kendrick, “The Jackson Police Department would like very much to offer both thanks and congratulations to the people of Jackson on this accomplishment. Certainly the red-light cameras and the speed van are not entirely responsible for the decrease. It takes the support of Judge Blake Anderson, who has made safer roadways a priority at City Court. It takes the work done by the engineering department, which has made improvements to roadways that enhance safety. Mostly, it takes the efforts of drivers to be more cognisant of safety each and every time they get in a vehicle.”

Kendrick continued, “People sometimes criticise the red-light cameras and speed van. Please keep in mind that we are not asking citizens to do anything new. We are just asking citizens to stop at red lights and obey the speed limit. Those who simply obey the traffic laws will never participate in the photo safety programme. To ensure the safety of the citizens of Jackson, the officers of the Jackson Police Department will continue their intensive efforts to remove impaired drivers from the roadways. Because speeding, running red lights and non-compliance with the safety belt and child restraint laws place people in danger, these laws will continue to be vigorously enforced as well.”

ATS has been serving the City of Jackson with intersection safety cameras since July 2006. The speed van was added in September 2009. Red-light cameras are located at four intersections in the city while the van deploys at different locations throughout the city to discourage drivers from speeding.

Enforcement

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • New York to implement speed cameras near schools
    August 16, 2013
    New York City is to establish a five-year demonstration programme to monitor school speed zones in New York City with speed cameras and to allow evidence captured on camera to be used to impose liability for speeding. This new law will enhance the safety of children, pedestrians and drivers in city school speed zones by encouraging drivers to drive with caution through these areas and supplement law enforcement efforts to catch violations and prevent accidents caused by speeding. New York Governor Andrew M
    Read More
  • US city extends red light camera contract
    August 19, 2016
    Boynton Beach, in Palm Beach County, Florida has given the green light to extending its contract with American Traffic Solutions, which runs its red light camera program. The commissioners’ vote extends the contract until May 2021. Boynton Beach is the only Palm Beach County municipality running a red light camera program. Other municipalities ended their programs in 2014 following a decision by the 4th District Court of Appeal stated that American Traffic Solutions did not have the authority to issue ti
    Read More
  • Report highlights cost effectiveness of crash reduction strategy
    November 21, 2017
    Local authorities in the UK needs an immediate injection of £200 million to tackle the high risk road sections, according to a new report from the Road Safety Foundation charity and Ageas UK. Called Cutting the Cost of Dangerous Roads, the report reveals that UK motorways and ‘A’ roads on the EuroRAP network make up 10% of the road network that contains half of all road deaths. It found that single carriageway ‘A’ roads have a risk factor seven times higher than motorways and nearly three times that of d
    Read More
  • Minnesota DOT deploys GTT’s Canoga to curb intersection vehicle crashes
    September 3, 2014
    Minnesota Department of Transportation (MnDOT) is working toward making the state’s roads safer, using the Canoga traffic sensing solution from Global Traffic Technologies (GTT) to warn at-risk drivers when cross-traffic is approaching. Nearly 70 per cent of fatal vehicle collisions in Minnesota, as well as other states, occur on roads in rural communities, where higher speeds, varying terrain and inconsistent sightlines can put many drivers in danger. The MnDOT initiative is part of the nationwide Towards
    Read More

Highlighted Content