Red-Light Runners Catch a Break

Red-light runners have received a reprieve of sorts, thanks to computer error. Red-light cameras installed at Brookhurst Street and Westminster Avenue will continue to issue only warnings--for the time being.

The cameras, in the midst of a six-month trial program to test their effectiveness, were supposed to begin issuing $271 citations in March. But computer problems have postponed that. Officials could not say when the cameras would begin issuing citations.

Even so, the mere presence of the cameras is ruffling the feathers of drivers.

“My customers don’t like it,” said Viet Nguyen, owner of a Mobil station at the intersection. “They’re scared of it and they try to avoid the intersection as much as possible.”

Nguyen has seen several flashes of light since the cameras began operating in February, but he said the cameras’ presence hasn’t hurt business. She admits it may be safe but she doesn’t like the look of the extra traffic-monitoring equipment in the intersection.

City officials chose the intersection for the trial run because of the high number of accidents there; more than 60 with serious injuries over the past five years, all reportedly caused by drivers running red lights.

“I’ve almost been hit a few times there,” said Todd Martindale, a computer technician from Garden Grove. “People have been running red lights there for a long time.”

Martindale, 24, said he likes the cameras as a deterrent but doesn’t like the idea of getting a ticket in the mail.

When a driver runs a red light, cameras take pictures of the vehicle’s license plate and of the driver’s face. A citation is then mailed.

“Sure, you can go to court to contest the ticket,” Martindale said. “But then you have to take a day off work, and it could cause problems.”

The cameras have been linked to a considerable reduction of red-light violations in other California cities, and in Oxnard, red-light running was reduced even at intersections without the cameras.

Garden Grove Police Lt. John A. Woods said the camera’s effect is important because every warning issued was a potential accident.

“Usually when we do heavy enforcement at signal lights, it’s because there’s been a significant increase in traffic accidents at an intersection,” Wood said. Garden Grove has five traffic officers, each responsible for two zones within the city.

“It’s much more cost-effective,” Woods said. “And you don’t just have the officer’s word against the violator. You’ve also got a picture.”

Chris Ceballos can be reached at (714) 966-7440.