Lil' Buddy's Blog: Speed Cameras Coming To Illinois? For Safety - or Revenue?

THE CHICAGO IL REAL ESTATE MARKET, AND OTHER THINGS CHICAGO, FROM THE POINT OF VIEW OF A LITTLE WHITE DOG!

Hey, hey, you dogs!

A show of paws, please!  How many of you dogs are careful drivers?  You know what I mean - you slow up when you see humans crossing the street.  You obey traffic signs and stop lights.  And you try not to SPEED!

For those of you whose paws didn't go up too high in the air - especially for the SPEEDING question - you better watch out! 

Jon Hilkevitch, in his story in yesterday's Chicago Tribune, reports of a proposed new State of IL Law, automatic enforcement of speeding violations - or "speed cameras" would be allowed in certain IL Counties.  One such applicable county would be Cook County - which includes the City of Chicago - nearby DuPage, Kane, and Lake Counties, as well as the Downstate IL Counties of Madison (St. Louis MO Metro Area), and St. Clair (Rockford IL Metro Area).

It would also lift the current IL ban on the use of recorded images for enforcing the speed limit in cases where a police officer is not present.

If enacted, the new law would allow municipalities and county police to mail speeders violation tickets of up to $100, without the offender being stopped by patrolling police.  The violations would be treated just like current Red Light Camera Violations, with these cameras in place in Chicago and in many other large cities across Illinois - they would be non-moving violations, and would not go on the offender's driving record.

As with Red Light Cameras, only the offending driver's license plate would be photographed and mailed to the registered owner of the vehicle.  The driver or passengers would not be photographed.  It would be the registered owner who would be responsible for paying the fine, regardless of who was actually driving the vehicle when the speeding offense occurred.

IL Department of Transportation statistics indicate more than 500 speeding-related traffic deaths occurred in 2007 across the state, and nearly 13,000 drivers died the same year nationally, due in part to excessive speed. 

In AZ, speed cameras have been widely deployed for several years.  Across their highways, state officials indicate an average 9 MPH speed drop since the cameras were installed.  Speed-related crashes on a major highway near Scottsdale AZ have tumbled 44% since cameras there were installed last year.

Speed cameras have also been used in the District of Columbia, and in the State of Oregon.

But many dogs, and some humans, continue to ask whether the purpose of the cameras is to truly save lives, or cost-effectively bolster the state coffers without having to employ more sworn officers?

That debate will intensify if Speed Enforcement Cameras come to a Chicago-area highway near you!

Please, you dogs - Be Safe!  And . . . SLOW DOWN!

See my post today@ BlogChicagoHomes.com.

YOUR ACE REPORTER ON FOUR PAWS (AND DRIVING AT THE POSTED SPEED LIMIT),

BUDDY HOLLY MOSS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO