PHOENIX — Phoenix is moving forward with their plans to reinstall red light cameras at dangerous intersections. The city council approved the project last October, citing high crash rates and rampant red light runners.
A lack of Phoenix police officers able to patrol the streets was also among the statistics leading the city council to this decision.
"The reality is Phoenix doesn't have enough officers. We have less than 30 patrolling over 5,000 miles of streets," Vice Mayor Ann O'Brien said.
In Arizona, 20% of all crashes involve a driver running a red light.
One AAA study also found Arizona has the most red light crashes per capita of any U.S. state. This data has been collected since Phoenix removed red light cameras in 2019.
"Injuries and fatalities dropped by nearly a third at intersections with cameras, since then the numbers have only gone up," Joseph D'Aguanno, a personal injury lawyer, said.
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On the street, pedestrians who use public transit to get around Phoenix say it's about time the city did something to slow down aggressive drivers.
“I see drivers not paying attention and speeding for sure, like I almost got hit earlier crossing the street," Alicia Reyes, a pedestrian, said.
"I think it would be safer for everybody because they would be conscious of the cameras," Sandra Zaborotny, a pedestrian, said.
Drivers, on the other hand, are not as thrilled. One man who delivers for DoorDash says he's concerned about more fines for people like him just trying to make ends meet.
"I had one ticket a few years ago that was $285, I do not need another one of those," he said.
The lone dissenting city council member Anna Hernandez from District 7 agreed with concerned drivers.
"I don't believe in criminalizing and ticketing our residents, it has never proven to keep us safer," Councilwoman Anna Hernandez said.
Hernandez said the council should be investing in infrastructure safety projects instead of cameras.
For the first 30 days after cameras are installed, drivers would receive warnings, not tickets, in the mail. The city is hoping to install the cameras by this fall.
