I. Introduction A. Attention Getter: Have you ever been stopped at an intersection and noticed multiple flashing lights coming from a box near the intersection when a car passes the white line? That box near the intersection is known as a red light photo enforcement camera. Its purpose is to record surveillance of all people violating any traffic laws associated with red lights and intersection. They take constant video footage and take pictures of the person committing an offence, their vehicle, and their license plate. When all of the footage is captured, it is sent directly to the local township police where it is reviewed and processed for a ticket to be mailed to the violator’s home. The original intended purpose of these cameras was to reduce the amount of traffic accidents occurring at intersections. Even though some people believe that red light cameras prevent accidents at intersections, red light cameras should be outlawed in the state of Illinois. Today, I will discuss how red light cameras actually cause more accidents than they prevent, are only a source of revenue for the townships that own them and it is unfair for many of the people who receive tickets from these cameras.

Transition: To begin, I will speak about all of the problems that have arisen due to red light cameras.

II. Body a. Problems
i. The first problem I will discuss is the fact that the red light cameras actually cause more accidents than they prevent. Even though the original purpose of implementing the red light cameras was to reduce the amount of traffic accidents that occur at intersections, the cameras actually do not do that job well at all. In fact, there has actually been an increase in accidents at intersections with these red light cameras. Some people would argue that the red light cameras have actually improved the safety at intersections but according to the National Motorists Association in an article published on November 10th, 2009 entitled Los Angeles Red Light Cameras Lead To Increased Accidents, records show that twenty out of thirty-two intersections in Los Angeles with red light cameras showed an increase in accidents, three remain about the same, and only nine showed a decrease in accidents within a six month period.

ii. The second problem I will discuss is the fact that the red light cameras are now only being used for a source of revenue for the local governments. Why are the red light cameras still being operated if the red light cameras have shown to not improve the safety of our street intersections? It is simple. The local governments have found that the red light cameras are a great source of revenue from the community without taxation. Certain cities have actually gone to an extent to make it easier to run a red light in their district. According to CBS Chicago reporter Mike Parker in his news report entitled Lawmaker Wants Longer Yellow Lights At ‘Photo Enforced’ Intersections, the city of Chicago has actually decreased the length of the yellow lights at intersections making it easier for drivers to run red lights. One might say that the red light cameras are not aimed for revenue but aimed more towards safety, but according to Chicago Tribune reporter David Kidwell in his November 2012 article entitled Inspector General Subpoena in Red-Light Camera Probe, Redflex, a company that produces red light cameras, has announced that they have a contract with the city of Chicago for the largest camera enforcement program in the world. The contract states that the city of Chicago will give the company Redflex a portion of the revenue produced by the red light cameras in order to use their devices. They have stated that the city of Chicago has made over $300 million in revenue and the company has made nearly $100 million from that revenue.

iii. The third problem I will discuss about the red light cameras is the fact that the concept is completely unfair to most of the people who receive the tickets processed by these cameras. Many people despise the red light cameras because they are not intentionally breaking the law when they get their picture taken. Some people would say that the cameras are doing the same thing that police officers would do if they were at the intersections, but according to a December 2011 Naperville Sun newspaper article entitled Getting Rid of Red-Light Cameras Right Thing to Do by Bill Mego, many Naperville, Illinois police officers that were interviewed said that they would never have personally written many of the tickets that were issued. Unlike the cameras, police officers are able to use discretion when pulling someone over for a traffic violation. If the officer feels that the violator truly made an honest mistake and does not deserve the ticket, they will not issue one. The cameras do not have the ability to use discretion so all violators will receive a ticket. Most of the tickets that are processed by the cameras are due to violations when turning right at an intersection with a red light. You are supposed to come to a complete stop at the intersection, as if it were a stop sign, and then proceed to take the turn. Many people will not come to a complete stop, but will come very close to it. The cameras pick this up and issue you a ticket when many police officers would say they would not issue the same ticket.

Transition: Now that I have discussed the issues that the red light cameras have caused, I will now discuss the solution that I believe will be the best way to deal with the red light camera problems.
b. Solution
i. I believe that the best way to fix the problems that the red light cameras are causing is to ban the use of the cameras in Illinois completely. Instead of having the red light cameras at the intersections, there should be a longer yellow light time. A law should be passed that states that all yellow lights in Illinois should not be shorter than four seconds in duration. According to an article published in 2005 by news reporter Derek Willis entitled Washington, D.C. Red Light Cameras, Studies show that adding one second of yellow improves safety from 35 to 90 percent. I believe this is the best solution because it increases safety and it eliminates all of the problems that the red light cameras are causing in Illinois. It will decrease the amount of accidents not only from people running red lights, but also from the accidents caused by the red light cameras. This policy will also prevent local townships from nickel and diming the people that drive on their streets because the use of the red light cameras will be illegalized. This policy will also eliminate the problem of the unfairness. Along with the red light cameras being illegalized, longer yellow lights provide more time for people to get out of the middle of the intersection before the opposite traffic starts coming.

Transition: So what have we discussed here?

III. Conclusion
a. We have discussed how red light cameras are actually not safe. They cause more accidents than they prevent. The red light cameras are also only now used for a source of revenue for local townships. The cameras are also unfair to many of the people who received tickets in the mail from these red light cameras. We have also discussed a new policy that should be implemented instead of the current one. Red light cameras should be illegalized and yellow lights should not be shorter than four seconds long. I believe that everyone that agrees with my policy should help me bring it to the Illinois government’s attention by contacting their local state senator and ask for a bill to be proposed stating the policy. Together, we can help make streets in Illinois safer and less expensive for people to drive on.

References
Parker, M. (2012). Lawmaker wants longer yellow lights at ‘photo enforced’ intersections. CBS Chicago.

Mega, B. (2011). Getting rid of red-light cameras right thing to do. Naperville sun.

Goldstein, D. (2009). Los angeles red light cameras lead to increased accidents. National motorists association.

Willis, D. (2005). Washington, d.c. red light cameras. Washington post.

Kidwell, D. (2012). Inspector general subpoena in red-light camera probe. Chicago tribune.