Didn't mean to respond to that post.

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It was 52-48, the out of state ownership and control (IIRC they picked the intersections, not the city) ABSOLUTELY moved the needle.

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You "ABSOLUTELY" know that all of the people that voted against it did so because of where the money went? Did the people that voted for them to stay not care where the money went or that it infringed on our 6th Amendment rights?

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Maybe it didn't matter to YOU personally but that was a significant factor in how close the polls were.

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That's why I said "I" and not "we" or "everyone". Or "absolutely". I don't use grouping or absolutes unless I know them to be true.

I do know that the lunch groups and bible study groups that I was in at the time had people from all walks of life and the reason that I gave were the reasons they were adamantly against them.

Yep. Bollards going in at Stallings and Lubbock.

Stucco said:

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Since we have so much money to burn we should spend some on adaptive signaling.

Some examples of what adaptive signaling can do:

• Don't flip the light because of one driver that is turning right on red.
• Automatically shorten or lengthen cycles based on lopsided traffic (pedestrians, congestion, construction, accidents, etc).
• Switch to flashing when traffic is light.
• Automatic coordination with surrounding adaptive signals to optimize timing in changing traffic conditions.

It is basically like having a cop manually directing traffic at every intersection, all the time, except they are also all synchronized.

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I remember when ....

Left turn from Texas to New Main was once a flashing yellow light. It was a shooting gallery. People speeding on Texas 50+ heading south and students turning on a flashing yellow light. I have seen more than one wreck at that intersection.

Stupe said:

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Ya'll crack me up! Debating red-light cameras when they have been outlawed by the State of Texas since 2019.

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I didn't realize there were rules about discussing past issues on here.

Thank you, Aggie_Fire. I hope they give forum cops the same 10% discount at Shipleys that they give real cops.

You earned it tonight.

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I laughed. I have thick skin. I would be more concerned if there wasn't some sort of agitation on this board!

Your opinion. My opinion. All opinions and that is your God given right in this country.

Stucco said:

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Since we have so much money to burn we should spend some on adaptive signaling.

Some examples of what adaptive signaling can do:

• Don't flip the light because of one driver that is turning right on red.
• Automatically shorten or lengthen cycles based on lopsided traffic (pedestrians, congestion, construction, accidents, etc).
• Switch to flashing when traffic is light.
• Automatic coordination with surrounding adaptive signals to optimize timing in changing traffic conditions.

It is basically like having a cop manually directing traffic at every intersection, all the time, except they are also all synchronized.

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AI for "traffic engineering" (Quotes for the oxymoron comment), is a very quickly growing market. It is too early to tell where it will go in the future, but AI is going to have a HUGE impact in the world of traffic management. IMHO, AI will take over traffic management in the very near future. And it is VERY expensive. Unfortunately the existing traffic systems that most cities have do not allow for this (think more hardware centric, not software centric) but currently major progress is being made for this concept.

All of your ideas are a huge step in the right direction. Except for one...Flashing lights require people to know how to use a flashing light and lots of drivers don't know how to yield. Too many drivers are too selfish and will take risks to ensure they get the right-of-way.

Also, drivers only took ONE DRIVING test ever. That doesn't mean they know how to drive, but at least the state got it's money. The bad drivers are the reason IMO that drivers have to be micro-managed.

It was meant to be light-hearted.

TheOC16 said:

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Sometimes you just have to have some imagination in your driving.

The left turn on Texas from Southwest Pkwy East bound will back up so dang much. I always kind of laughed at the people who'd sit in a 15 car line that lets 3-4 through a light. I'd just go through the intersection, turn left into CVS, and then right turn back onto Texas and save myself several light cycles when I lived over there.

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Just FYI: TRC 545.423:
(a) An operator may not cross a sidewalk or drive through a driveway, parking lot, or business or residential entrance without stopping the vehicle.
(b) An operator may not cross or drive in or on a sidewalk, driveway, parking lot, or business or residential entrance at an intersection to turn right or left from one highway to another highway.


I think the biggest cause of most of the red light running I see (for me it's the feeder road crossings, especially on Briarcrest and University, although Texas and University is bad, too) is simply that the roadways are inadequate to the traffic loads, especially at peak times, and people are impatient with waiting multiple turns through the signal.

Looking at trying to do targeted enforcement at problem intersections, it would have to be done with motorcycle cops. A cop in a car has to be the first car sitting at the intersection, otherwise they're stuck and can't do anything. Motorcycles can sit on the sidewalk.

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Looking at trying to do targeted enforcement at problem intersections, it would have to be done with motorcycle cops. A cop in a car has to be the first car sitting at the intersection, otherwise they're stuck and can't do anything. Motorcycles can sit on the sidewalk.

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Nearly all of CSPD's traffic-specific units use motorcycles. Doesn't mean the cars don't pull people over obviously but the traffic-dedicated ones are all nearly all bikes.

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I think the biggest cause of most of the red light running I see (for me it's the feeder road crossings, especially on Briarcrest and University, although Texas and University is bad, too) is simply that the roadways are inadequate to the traffic loads, especially at peak times, and people are impatient with waiting multiple turns through the signal.

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I think this is true for people that are somewhat close to being within the margin-for-error of stop/go decisions. But I think the primary culprit of just absolutely egregious running of lights is just people who are selfish and assume (rightfully) that there won't be any repercussions for doing it.

When traffic is backed up it's a not as big of a deal if a few more cars go after the signal changes (except when it backs up traffic into the intersection which also happens too often). Everyone is already aware of the traffic, nobody is moving particularly fast, etc.

But an intersection I go through a couple of times per day where it's gotten dangerous is Rock Prairie and Victoria and the most dangerous red light running there isn't when there's heavy traffic causing impatience, it's just people gunning it because they don't care about anyone else and they know nothing is going to happen.

Look Out Below said:

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Looking at trying to do targeted enforcement at problem intersections, it would have to be done with motorcycle cops. A cop in a car has to be the first car sitting at the intersection, otherwise they're stuck and can't do anything. Motorcycles can sit on the sidewalk.

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Nearly all of CSPD's traffic-specific units use motorcycles. Doesn't mean the cars don't pull people over obviously but the traffic-dedicated ones are all nearly all bikes.

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FIFY

I've been sick of red light runners since the late 1990s. Some of you oldtimers may remember the two young ladies from Wimberley, Texas, who I believe were killed by a truck (dump truck?) whose driver had run a red light. I think the accident was at a stop light somewhere between Texas and Wellborn.

I've seen an uptick this fall of what I will call "Late Red Light Runners* since the students have returned.

*Late Red Light Runners: Driver who enters an intersection after the light has turned red....:

• with malice aforethought
• unaware because of texting, not paying attention

Post Scriptum: I'm also sick of drivers who are too nice to honk at these Late Red Light Runners. These LRLR need some negative feedback. At a minimum honk at them. You dash camera types could copy the video of LRLR transgessions and pass the videos on to the police/sheriff deputies/.....

PS3D said:

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Stupe said:

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I voted for the referendum to have those removed and it didn't have anything to do with where the money went.

It was because there was no proof of who was driving, no officer interaction, no ability to face the accuser in court, and almost impossible to have it overturned.
Those cameras were not consistent and I don't know how often they were reviewed by a live person. People would get them for going through an intersection on green and it would be set off by someone running a light that was two or three vehicles back.

Those should have been gone. Where the money went didn't matter.

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It was 52-48, the out of state ownership and control (IIRC they picked the intersections, not the city) ABSOLUTELY moved the needle. Maybe it didn't matter to YOU personally but that was a significant factor in how close the polls were.

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As I recollect, the folks at City Hall pulled some shenanigans on the wording of the ballot.

Every time RLCs went to voters they were shot down in Texas. So, CSTAT city staffers tried to pull a fast one by obfuscating language on the ballot.

There were several "hang 'em high" old timers who came out to vote. The blue hair brigade loved the RLCs. I've always wondered if the ballot had used plain language that it might have passed.

Long term I don't think cameras will stand up to court scrutiny. Someone addressed it on here but IMO they violate the 6th Amendment right to confront your accuser. If an intersection is prone to red light running the city needs to put motorcycle cops on it for a couple of weeks til the habit is broken so to speak. I'm with whomever said the fine needs to increase substantially as well. A few hundred dollars isn't a huge deterrent to most people. $1000? $2500? That will largely fix this. Maybe that's why they are civil instead of criminal, cities knew they were unconstitutional which to me makes this a money grab more than a safety issue.

On a separate but related "solution" as self driving cars begin to become the norm this goes away entirely. My Model Y never runs a red light no matter how aggravated I get that it's now X lights in a row that were red. I think a decade from now this problem is better than it is now and a decade after that it's almost entirely gone.

Why can't an officer just sign off on the red light tickets and be the accuser?

bobinator said:

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Why can't an officer just sign off on the red light tickets and be the accuser?

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If the camera didn't capture my face what's the officer going to say? He saw a red Tesla Model Y with Texas plate LOYALAG run a red light. Then the owner, me, is going to say that's great, who was driving? Could be me, Mrs LOYAL AG, Son of LOYAL AG, Daughter of LOYAL AG or Elon Musk. Kidding FSD doesn't run red lights.

This isn't a toll violation. A red light violation is a criminal offense meaning you can't attach it to the owner of the car and just say "sorry, sucks to be you". CS and Bryan both have motorcycle fleets and that's literally their job, traffic safety. Before they were banned the red light cameras were civil offenses I assume because they couldn't reach the bar for criminal.

LOYAL AG said:

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Smeghead4761 said:

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It's a moot point. RLCs have been barred by law in Texas since 2019.

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This is the right answer. They were very clearly a money grab from the beginning and thus should have been banned. Once we found out cities were shortening yellow lights in monitored intersections they lost any pretense of using them to make the roads safer. TTI has studied this and shown that extending the time when all lights are red to 4 seconds is the best way to make intersections safer. Let's do that if we want to improve safety.

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Weird that CoCS would shorten yellow lights in an attempt to punish drivers so they could increase revenues.

That doesn't sound like CoCS AT ALL!

Anyone know who could give us the Brazos County traffic accident fatalities, due to Red Light Runners, data by year since 1995?

It would also be nice to have the Brazos County traffic tickets, for running a Red Light, data by year since 1995.