MILLBRAE CITY COUNCIL APPROVES RED LIGHT CAMERA INSTALLATION
03/15/06 9:20 PST

MILLBRAE (BCN)

Drivers with a need for speed in Millbrae had better slow down, as the city will soon begin installing red light cameras near one of its most congested and accident-prone intersections.

On Tuesday, the Millbrae City Council approved the installation of red light cameras near the area where Millbrae Avenue, Rollins Road and southbound U.S. Highway 101 meet, according to a city report.

In the last two years, at least 25 collisions have occurred in the intersection, four of which were caused by red light violations, according to the report. Though traffic enforcement is often difficult to manage, the Federal Highway Administration reported that "Automated Enforcement Systems can be effective and reliable tools to help reduce the number of red-light running violators and associated crashes."

A study of the Millbrae Avenue and Rollins Road intersection and Millbrae Avenue and Highway 101 intersection in February showed that there were 1,060 red light violations during a four-hour period one day, according to the report.

The city is proposing the installation of five cameras, which each cost about $5,300 per month. However, based on information collected from American Traffic Solutions, if each camera captures 10 red light violators a day the city will generate more than $1.7 million a year in revenues.

Currently there are 80 jurisdictions in California with red light cameras, including San Mateo, Fremont, Union City and San Francisco.