Skip to main content

Florida red-light camera intersections show reduction in crashes, says report

According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles' (DHSMV) fifth annual report on red-light safety cameras, intersections equipped with the technology are challenging a state-wide trend. While overall crashes state-wide have increased by 33 per cent from 2012-2015, crashes specifically related to red-light running at red-light safety camera intersections have decreased by more than three per cent. There is also a reduction in crashes at red-light safety camera intersections involvi
January 6, 2017 Read time: 2 mins
According to the Florida Department of Highway Safety and Motor Vehicles' (DHSMV) fifth annual report on red-light safety cameras, intersections equipped with the technology are challenging a state-wide trend. While overall crashes state-wide have increased by 33 per cent from 2012-2015, crashes specifically related to red-light running at red-light safety camera intersections have decreased by more than three per cent.

There is also a reduction in crashes at red-light safety camera intersections involving non-motorists, pedestrians and cyclists.  These collisions at red-light safety camera intersections fell by nearly 20 per cent while at the same time the number of pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities state-wide climbed nearly 33 percent during the four-year period studied in the report.

"This important analysis shows red-light safety cameras continue to stand out as a deterrent to dangerous crashes, especially those involving pedestrians," said Liz Caracciolo, ATS safety general manager. “An overall three per cent reduction in red-light running crashes at Florida's worst intersections, along with a 20 per cent decrease in crashes involving non-motorists are notable achievements considering the fact that crashes are climbing at a frightening rate state-wide.”

Each year, DHSMV gathers and analyses program and crash data from municipalities operating under Florida's Mark Wandall Traffic Safety Act.  Of the 58 cities using red-light safety camera to deter red-light running, 28 were selected for an in-depth analysis of crash data specific to intersections armed with the technology.  

Despite these positive results, DHSMV cautions that “the crash analysis should be put into context of the overall complexity of the issue at hand, as many factors may contribute to the change in number of crashes outlined in this report”.

Related Content

  • April 29, 2019
    Cost benefit: just $25 boosts pedestrian safety in Florida
    A relatively straightforward change to the way that pedestrians cross the street in a Florida city has made a significant safety improvement. And what’s more, it was cheap, finds David Crawford Installing a lead pedestrian interval (LPI) system at 25 central business district signalised intersections in the Florida city of Lakeland has cut numbers of incidents involving pedestrians by some 60% - at a cost of US$25 for 30 minutes' work, according to traffic operations manager Angelo Rao.
  • September 18, 2014
    TfL upgrades London’s speed and red light safety cameras
    Transport for London (TfL) has begun work on a programme to overhaul the capital’s road safety camera network; replacing hundreds of old wet film cameras with modern and more efficient digital safety cameras in order to help further reduce casualties on London’s roads. According to TfL, safety cameras have proved successful in reducing road casualties in recent years. At locations where safety cameras operate in the capital, research shows that the number of people killed or seriously injured (KSI) fell
  • August 24, 2016
    No sign of a decrease in motor fatalities says National Safety Council
    Preliminary estimates from the National Safety Council indicate that motor vehicle deaths in the US were nine per cent higher through the first six months of 2016 than in 2015, and 18 per cent higher than two years ago at the six month mark. An estimated 19,100 people have been killed on US roads since January and 2.2 million were seriously injured. The total estimated cost of these deaths and injuries is US$205 billion. The upward trend began in late 2014 and shows no signs of decreasing. Last winter, t
  • August 6, 2014
    CRASH aids crash reduction
    Announcing a decrease in traffic fatalities in Tennessee, US, earlier this year, the Tennessee Department of Safety and Homeland Security indicated preliminary figures of 988 traffic fatalities in 2013, a 2.7 per cent decrease compared to 2012, when there were 1,015 traffic fatalities. At the same time, Tennessee Highway Patrol (THP) Colonel Tracy Trott said: “In 2014, we will employ a predictive analytics model to look even more closely at where traffic crashes are most likely to occur and deploy our res