The city’s red light camera program will expire at the end of the year without help from Albany.
Elizabeth Adames’ brother Joel, along with his friend David Fernandez, was killed by a speeding driver who ran a red light in August 2022 at the intersection of Sherman Avenue and 207th Street.
What You Need To Know
- The families of two men killed in August 2022 by a speeding car that ran a red light in Inwood are calling on Albany lawmakers to renew and expand the red light camera program to save other families from their grief
- The program expires at the end of the year and is only at 150 out of 13,700 signalized intersections
- In a new report, the city Department of Transportation said the program has reduced t-bone crashes by 65% at intersections with the cameras, but a 54% increase in reckless driving overall since the pandemic making the expansion more urgent
“They need to wake up. And we need these cameras now,” she said.
Adames and Fernandez’s siblings gathered to call on lawmakers in Albany to reauthorize and expand the city’s red light camera program before it expires in December to save other families from grief.
“Living with grief is hard, and it’s something that we’re going to have to live for the rest of our lives,” Adames said. “But one thing we know is that we’re going to keep their legacy alive by making [a] change in these streets so that no other family has to go through what we’re going through today.”
The New York City Department of Transportation just released a report, required by law, that shows red light cameras change behavior.
Violations, called notices of liability, are going down as the program expanded.
According to the DOT, 94% of drivers who are caught running a red light receive no more than two violations.
But DOT Commissioner Ydanis Rodríguez said there has been an increase in reckless driving since the pandemic.
“It’s never been more urgent. Last year there were 29 people killed in red light running crashes,” said Rodríguez. “And all of those deaths have one thing in common. They occurred at intersections with no red-light cameras.”
Currently, there are only 150 intersections with red light cameras in the city out of about 13,700 with signals. The DOT would not only like a 5-year extension but also an expansion to 1,325 intersections.
“This is not about revenue or, like people not wanting to pay,” said Fernandez’s sister Yadilsa Fernandez. “It really catches the essence of catching and making people understand they have a responsibility when they get behind the wheel.”
The families and officials are also supporting a bill that would allow the DMV to suspend the registration of any car that racks up five or more violations in a 12-month period.