New speed cameras won't eliminate errors, radar experts say

[Ravens2006]

Really, that "zebra striped road" argument irritates the living crap out of me. It shows that the people influencing the decisions being made / technology being used... DON'T KNOW WHAT THEY'RE TALKING ABOUT.

[Ravens2006]

I'm starting to wonder if the real problem is that in a rush for revenue they are trying to make technology do something it is not yet actually capable of doing.

The sum of the overall "technology" can help get very good speed readings. But the way they're using it is highly flawed.

The better way to do it... You use the radar reading to trigger an "alarm" or warning, basically saying that something in that area might be moving too fast. Then you use the time-stamped imagery to confirm the speed of the object(s). Machine clocks are highly accurate, can be synchronized to GPS time, and can be used along with pictures to calculate a very accurate speed reading. And you don't have any radar bounce characteristics to worry about.

Unless you've literally SLAMMED on your brakes at the very millisecond that the first picture is taken... you're not going to drastically influence the calculation. And even then, as long as the two photos are taken WAY too far apart, you're very likely not going to "save yourself" a ticket.

[Ravens2006]

And paying the vendor any amount "per ticket" is completely friggin' insane and irresponsible. You pay them for the purchase of the system, you pay them for the configuration of the units, and you pay then for maintenance / repair (a service contract basically). You don't pay them "per ticket".

If anybody really thinks a vendor / contractor isn't going to take advantage of that cost structure, you're naive or delusional.

[Daan]

Sorry, I'm failing to see the issue.

Here is my take on the matter. I speed. A lot. I like to drive at over 80mph on the highway. I like to find the curviest back roads I can and drive them like a bat out of hell (well, within my car's limits).

The only time I drive below the speed limit is when I'm in a school zone or in a residential neighborhood - and I don't need speed cameras to make me do that. Granted, speed cameras do make me more aware and more likely to slow down in the locations where I know they exist.

I'll take the occasional $40 and zero points. I find that it's a fair trade-off when compared to $100+ speeding tickets + points, +the 20 minutes it seems to take for a cop to run tags & write a ticket, etc.

Officers setting up speed traps, etc. do nothing to slow down traffic, and really only catch a tiny amount of speeders in a given area. Tiny. Also, speed traps are generally set up in areas where the cop can hide the best and meet his/her quota, not where accidents most occur. I like that speed cameras are generally set up in school zones and construction zones.

Again, it seems like Baltimore City has an issue with how THEY have implemented their speed cameras. Fix the process - it's not the technology that's broken.

If you drive over 80 mph on the highway, then you're like the fools I encounter driving north on 95. I hope a state trooper nails your a s s .

The speed camera technology has been proven to be faulty.

.

[The Eternal White Belt]

If you drive over 80 mph on the highway, then you're like the fools I encounter driving north on 95. I hope a state trooper nails your a s s .

The speed camera technology has been proven to be faulty.

.

Ok, sure.

[Lawman 27]

The sum of the overall "technology" can help get very good speed readings. But the way they're using it is highly flawed.

RADAR* sends out a huge beam that then is reflected, refracted or absorbed. One of the reasons Police Officers need so much training is that they need to determine WHICH vehicle is returning the signal (as I have said: RADAR is NOT lane selective, you can not promise that the car you have the RADAR aimed at is actually the one sending back the signal...You need training in that area).

All the new bells and whistles that they add to RADAR will not change its basic operating system, you still need a human to verify which car was the offender.

IN OTHER WORDS: The citizens of the State are very picky when it comes to a Police Officer nabbing them on RADAR, but they can accept that a machine 'catches' them?

ALSO IN OTHER WORDS: As long as our politicians are addicted to money, and as long as the voters are addicted to the freebies that they demand, then nothing will change.


___________________________________

*The City had just started using LIDAR when I left, it IS lane selective and can 'lock on' a specific vehicle. RADAR CAN NOT!

[Struds]

And paying the vendor any amount "per ticket" is completely friggin' insane and irresponsible. You pay them for the purchase of the system, you pay them for the configuration of the units, and you pay then for maintenance / repair (a service contract basically). You don't pay them "per ticket".

If anybody really thinks a vendor / contractor isn't going to take advantage of that cost structure, you're naive or delusional.

I have no problem with paying the vendor per ticket, as long as the vendor is required to pay the city $40 and the wronged driver $100 for every false ticket produced by their equipment.

That just might be the incentive they need to keep up the maintenance/calibration and interpretation standards.

[techbalt]

From the Brew: Inside City Hall: Speed cameras, not supposed to cost a dime, will now require $2.2 million
http://www.baltimorebrew.com/2013/04...e-2-2-million/

City Council President Jack Young supports the $2.2 million deal because of a minority contractor bring part of the project. The minority contractor mentioned has contributed money to Young's campaign on 4 separate occasions:
http://noconawaysin2014.wordpress.co...ney-from-them/