Area drivers looking to outwit police speed traps and traffic cameras are using an iPhone application and other global positioning system devices that pinpoint the location of the cameras.
That has irked D.C. police chief Cathy Lanier, who promised her officers would pick up their game to counteract the devices, which can also help drivers dodge sobriety checkpoints.
The police chief is upset, because:
"I think that's the whole point of this program," she told The Examiner. "It's designed to circumvent law enforcement -- law enforcement that is designed specifically to save lives."
People who aren't morons, though, will zoom in on this line:
Photo radar tickets generated nearly $1 billion in revenues for D.C. during fiscal years 2005 to 2008.
The police chief was lying. Red-light cameras cause traffic accidents.
Do you want the speed-trap beating apps? Via the New York Times Blog:
NMobile and Trapster are two mobile applications that provide up-to-date, detailed maps of speed-enforcement zones with live police traps, speed cameras or red-light cameras. After launching, each application pulls up a map pinpointing the locations of speed traps within driving distance. An audio alert will sound as vehicles approach an area tagged as harboring a speed trap.
One of the conclusions of the USF study doesn't ring true to me: "The injury rate from red-light running crashes has dropped by a third in less than a decade, indicating red-light running crashes have been continually declining in Florida without the use of cameras." It seems more likely that the injury rate is declining due to driver and passenger-side airbags in the rear vehicle.
Posted by: Aaron | July 10, 2009 at 06:08 AM