LTC 197-2012 Crash Data at Red Light Camera m MIAMI BEACH
OFFICE OF THE CITY MANAGER
NO. LTC # 197 -2012 LETTER TO COMMISSION
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TO: Mayor Matti Herrera Bower and Members of the City Commission `=,`ft
FROM: Kathie G. Brooks, Interim City Manager
DATE: July 30, 2012 -i
SUBJECT: Crash Data at Red Light Camera Traffic Intersections
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The purpose of this Letter to the Commission is to provide an update on the Red Light
Camera Photo Enforcement Program and its impact on traffic safety per the request at the
June 6, 2012 Committee of the Whole.
The program began on April 15, 2010, limited to City -owned roadways, with all ten (10)
cameras becoming operational by October 2010. Following is a comparison of crash
data at the nine (9) traffic locations with ten (10) Red Light Cameras from 2009 -2011.
The table below shows the number of crashes at each red light camera intersection
since the inception of the program by fiscal year. The data shows that the number of
crashes at red light camera intersections has gone down since the inception of the
program. From Fiscal Year 2009/2010 to Fiscal Year 2010/2011, the number of crashes
at these intersections has gone down from 59 to 49.
Data for the first three (3) quarters of Fiscal Year 2011/2012 (October 2011 through
June 2012) reflects a continuation of this downward trend, with a total of only 19
crashes. In addition, it is important to note that the number of total crashes reported
citywide has increased from 4,723 in 2009 to 5,114 in 2011 — an 8% increase.
LOCATION Date Oct. 2009 — Oct. 2010 — Oct. 2011 —
Camera Sept. 2010 Sept. 2011 Year to Date
Operational (June 2012)
17 ST AND ALTON RD 4/15/10 7 9 10
17 ST AND WASHINGTON 4/15/10 14 11 3
AVE
DADE BLVD AND 4/15/10 3 6 0
WASHINGTON AVE
23 ST AND PINETREE DR 4/15/10 2 0 0
CHASE AVE AND ALTON RD 4/15/10 6 6 1
41 STAND PRAIRIE AVE 4/15/10 3 3 1
63 ST AND INDIAN CREEK 4/15/10 14 9 2
ABBOTT AVE AND INDIAN 10/1/10 4 2 0
CREEK
71 STAND INDIAN CREEK 4/15/10 6 3 2
TOTAL 59 1 49 19
Moreover, data has been analyzed to determine if there is a trend when most crashes
occur at these intersections. Below is a graph that shows the total number of crashes
per month:
Total Number of Crashes at
Red Light Camera Intersections
10
9
8
7
6
5 FY 09/10
4
3 �FY 10/11
2 FY 11/12
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Crash data shows that in 2009 and 2010, most crashes took place in January and
November, and spikes in 2010 and 2011 occurred in June, as well as the early part of
the tourist season.
ENFORCEMENT DATA
All ten (10) red light cameras have only been operational since October 2010. As a result,
there is only one (1) full year of data available that reflects the impact of this program.
The table below indicates the number of violations issued to date this year:
YEAR TO DATE AVG
January 1, 2012 -May 31, 2012 ISSUED PER %
TOTAL VIOLATIONS DAY REJECTED
LOCATIONS REVIEWED ISSUED REJECTED
DADE BLVD - WASHINGTON AVE 40 34 6 0.22 55%
17 ST - WASHINGTON AVE - SB 971 440 531 2.89 45%
17 ST - WASHINGTON AVE - EB 359 196 163 1.29 6%
17 ST - ALTON RD - WB 393 368 25 2.42 2%
23 ST - PINETREE DR - SB 103 101 2 0.66 66%
CHASE AVE - ALTON RD - NB 1804 613 1191 4.03 67%
41 ST - PRAIRIE AVE 134 44 90 0.29 2%
INDIAN CREEK - 63 ST - SB 190 186 4 1.22 51%
INDIAN CREEK - 71 ST - NB 601 293 308 1.93 18%
INDIAN CREEK - ABBOTT AVE - SB 259 212 47 1.39 15%
TOTAL 1 4,854 2,487 1 2,367 1 1.63 49%
As you can note, average violations issued per day is now 1.63. In comparison, a total of
7,572 red light camera violations were issued in 2010, with an average of 2.94 per camera
per day. In 2011, 7,030 violations were issued with an average of 1.94 violations per day. As
reflected in the table above, certain intersections are averaging less than one (1) violation
per day, which has spurred discussions about camera relocations.
CONCLUSION
Overall, data shows that driver behavior is certainly being modified, as the number of
violations per intersection has declined since the inception of the program. Last year, the
Commission authorized the Administration to pursue the relocation of two (2) cameras. In
order to ensure that the relocation was appropriate from a safety perspective, the
Administration provided the vendor with three (3) proposed locations based on crash data
and volume of traffic, which would be validated by Affiliated Computer Systems (ACS) Inc,
the City's vendor for the red light cameras. through manual counts at their expense. These
counts would provide information as to the number of red light violations on a given day, in
blocks of time to discern productivity at peak hours, for a total of 7.5 hours. Initial results
indicated that the locations proposed by the City were not problematic intersections for red
light violations. Therefore, camera relocation to these intersections was not recommended.
After reviewing additional data and utilizing field experience from the Miami Beach Police
Motor Squad Unit, an additional list of potential intersections to relocate two (2) of the red
light cameras was provided to ACS and a second series of manual counts were conducted.
The initial cost provided by ACS Inc., to relocate the two cameras was priced at $180,000
($90,000 per intersection); however, through negotiations with ACS Inc., the Administration
was able to reduce the price per camera relocation, which to approximately $45,000 per
intersection. As a result, two (2) new locations have now been identified and validated
through manual counts, where camera relocation would cost the City approximately
$90,000. The relocation would move cameras from 41S & Prairie Avenue and Dade
Boulevard & Washington Avenue to 41S Street & Alton Road and 43r Street & Alton Road
Northbound.
If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.
RAM /DM /MG