IL - Illinois lawmakers may focus speed-cams on the MLK Bridge

Illinois lawmakers may focus speed-cams on the MLK Bridge

By Kevin McDermott
Post-Dispatch Springfield Bureau

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http://www.stltoday.com/blogzone/pol...am-150x150.jpgSPRINGFIELD, Ill. - Illinois legislators in the next week could pass a measure that would see speed-enforcement cameras installed on the Martin Luther King Jr. Bridge.
The sometimes-controversial process automatically snaps pictures of cars that are violating the speed limit, and the owners later get their speeding ticket in the mail (based on the license number in the photo.) It’s in use, or being discussed, in other parts of the state. The MLK Bridge was targeted because of the high traffic fatality rate there, including six deaths in the last few weeks of 2008.
“The Martin Luther King Bridge has one of the highest accident rates in the state,” state Rep. Dan Beiser, D-Alton, one of the bill’s sponsors, said in a written statement. “Since police cannot monitor drivers’ speed while on the mile-long bridge, these cameras will hopefully be a clear reminder that lives are at stake.”
The bill passed an Illinois House committee Wednesday and could hit the House floor for a final vote between now and the end of next week, when the General Assembly is scheduled to adjourn. It has already passed the state Senate.

WTF???? I am so pissed off...

So they can't get them approved state wide so we're going camera by camera across the state now? And saying police can't monitor speed on that bridge is complete and utter BS, pacing over, VASCAR are easy to do on the bridge not to mention shooting radar and lidar from each end, on top of moving radar while on the bridge and make the stop where it's safe to do so.

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Originally Posted by Motor On

So they can't get them approved state wide so we're going camera by camera across the state now? And saying police can't monitor speed on that bridge is complete and utter BS, pacing over, VASCAR are easy to do on the bridge not to mention shooting radar and lidar from each end, on top of moving radar while on the bridge and make the stop where it's safe to do so.

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So true dude!

House passes bill for study of centerline barriers on MLK, McKinley bridges

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The Illinois House on Thursday unanimously passed a resolution to request the Illinois Department of Transportation to conduct a study on the feasibility of centerline cable barriers on the Martin Luther King and McKinley bridges.
State Rep. Ron Stephens, R-Highland, introduced House Joint Resolution 7 in February in response to News-Democrat stories about the high death toll on bridges that lack centerline protective barriers.
Stephens stated in a news release Thursday that he wanted to see whether implementing barriers would be an option on the MLK and McKinley bridges, which cross the Mississippi River from East St. Louis and Venice, respectively.

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"It is well past time to pay attention to these two bridges and the high number of fatal accidents that seem to take place upon them," Stephens said. "The cable barriers being discussed have worked very well on our highways and might prove successful on these bridges. We won't know until this feasibility study is completed."
Stephens pointed to a Missouri Department of Transportation report that said median guard cables limited the total number of crossover fatalities to two in 2008 compared to 55 the year before.
Last year, Stephens supported a successful measure to install cable barriers along Interstate 64 near O'Fallon.
IDOT will conduct a study on expanding the use of cable barriers on state highways, and report its findings and recommendations within six months to the General Assembly. The resolution is effective immediately.
Stephens also sponsored a bill that the Illinois House passed on Tuesday to install cameras the MLK Bridge in East St. Louis that will automatically snap photos of speeding motorists.
Speeding is the No. 1 factor in the crossover accidents that have killed 14 people in a decade on this bridge, Stephens has said.
The Senate is reviewing SB 933, and if approved, the bill will go to Gov. Pat Quinn. The bill would take effect for three years and would require IDOT to report to the General Assembly every six months on its progress.

So they want to do barriers and speed cameras now. NICE!