This Albany intersection, Queen and Elm, photographed on Sept. 6, is third in line to get red-light and speed cameras, according to current city plans.
Additional details have emerged about the timing of Albany’s project to start or step up photo enforcement of traffic laws at four intersections.
In an email to Councilwoman Matilda Novak, Police Chief Marcia Harnden wrote on Thursday:
“The current timeline is as follows: The cameras at Queen and Geary will become operational on or around November 1st, with a 30-day warning period for drivers before citations are issued. This location already had a red-light camera, so the process of upgrading and installing the new cameras was relatively quick. The next location to go live will be North Albany Road, although a specific date has not been confirmed yet. Once North Albany is active, the project will move to the intersection of Queen and Elm, followed by Santiam and Geary. The staggered launch is designed to allow the relevant personnel to adjust to the increased workload. Each violation reported to us by the company must be reviewed by an APD officer before being sent to the court. Activating all the cameras simultaneously would not be practical. It is important to note that the City of Albany will only be responsible for the cameras that are active and issuing citations.”
From this, I gathered that at the moment there is no photo enforcement against red-light runners at Queen and Geary, where the cameras started recording violations in November 2007. Those cameras have been replaced, and the new ones won’t start operating for another month or more.
I checked with Harnden to make sure I read that right. The chief came back with:
“The camera has been swapped over to new equipment. We expect it to launch around Nov. 1 with the warning period. The intersection will do both speed and red light enforcement.”
I read that as confirmation that until the cameras (there are two sets, each watching one approach) start operating around the first of November, red-light enforcement at Queen and Geary is taking a break.
To recap, there’s no target date yet for starting photo enforcement on North Albany Road at Thornton Lake Drive. As far as I have been able to see, the cameras have not even been installed.
Given the promised one-month warning period after the cameras start working, it looks like it will be 2025 before North Albany commuters will have to worry about getting speeding tickets.
Actually, though, any worry about this is probably overdone. Even without the threat of photo radar, when there’s traffic in the school zone on North Albany, it’s hard to earn a speeding ticket because traffic is usually slow. (hh)
Hering’s fevered fervor over the fact that the Crime Lights at Queen and Geary are currently not recording/reporting scofflaws (he excitedly mentions the fact twice) gives one a sense that Hering is provoking Drivers to stretch the interpretive boundaries of what is a yellow light and what is a red light. Hasso … the Traffic Mephistopheles
“From this, I gathered that at the moment there is no photo enforcement against red-light runners at Queen and Geary, where the cameras started recording violations in November 2007.”
Thank you for reinforcing that red-light runners and their ilk currently have zero penalty when doing it. If the proposed fines don’t work, raise them!
Ahh, again we hear from on high…that is from Kopczynski, the self-appointed ruler of Albany.
Naw, just a court jester.
How much do the cameras cost the city, to buy, to maintain and to operate?
How is that revenue generated?
Thanks
Verra Mobility will charge Albany $3,000 a month per operating camera system, plus $20 per paid traffic ticket. The city expects ticket revenue to cover the expense.
no worries, those that run red lights at Queen and Geary,
Dont read Hasso’s blog