By: Scoop Stanton
Well, I got another Notice of Infraction (NoI) from the fine people from the District of Columbia! This time it was for a red-light infraction. And it included pictures. And there was my early model luxury economy sedan proceeding through the steady red signal. The fine: $150! Safety my ass! The government of DC doesn’t care about safety. If they did the speed cameras would be hooked up to a License Plate Reader and would alert the Metropolitain Police Department (MPD) that my stolen car is qualifying for the next Formula 1 race on the streets of DC! Meanwhile the DC Council decriminalized fare evasion. Fare evasion or “theft of service” is a misdemeanor in New York. It’s a civil offense in DC. Any transit cop from any agency will tell you that people who fare evade have; weapons, narcotics or a warrant or a combination of all three! The DC government (and all other municipalities) are only interested in the money generated in camera tickets! And with the hundreds of millions of dollars generated by these cameras, the streets of DC should be as smooth as a baby’s bottom and all infrastructure programs should be paid for! But its not.
With a police officer doing a traffic stop for the same offense, there’s something called discretion. He or she would hopefully know that if a car did stop for that light at that time at the speed I was travelling, I would be in “the box” or intersection causing problems. That officer’s salary and benefits costs the taxpayer $100,000+ a year plus $30,000 for the RMP or cruiser then overtime for traffic court.
The traffic cameras cost the city nothing and the contractor gets a cut of the fines. Its in the contractors best interest to keep catching people speeding and running red lights. Its easier to say someone is speeding than running a red light.
SEVEN FIVE RADIO 