Medford Police (MPD) say that contrary to recent statements made about the photo enforcement program, statistics show a reduction in drivers running red lights and less crashes in intersections with traffic enforcement cameras.
There are currently four photo enforced intersections throughout Medford which monitor both red light and speed violations. Crashes at photo enforced intersections have decreased by 19% within the past ten years.
According to MPD, a number of incorrect statements have been made in relation to a recent Medford Municipal Court case involving a red light ticket at the intersection of Stewart and Barnett.
The City of Medford and the Medford Police Department are pushing back after a local resident named Glenn Gumaer threatened legal action after he allegedly discovered improper yellow light lengths at traffic control device equipped intersections in the city.
Medford Police released video footage of Glenn Gumaer committing a violation of ORS 811.265 Failure to Obey a Traffic Control Device by running a red light. Gumaer was found guilty in the Medford Municipal Court.
The City’s Traffic Engineer has reviewed all camera enforcement intersections to address concerns raised about the light timing. While all intersections were found to be legally compliant, of the 16 movement/approaches analyzed, three yellow light timings were updated from 3.5 seconds to 5.1 seconds to increase fairness.
Given the complicated nature of the signal timing requirements, the City is dismissing Gumaer’s appeal to the Circuit Court.
Photo enforced red light and speed cameras are located at the intersection of Barnett and Stewart, Biddle and McAndrews, Central and 4th Street, and Riverside and 8th Street.
Statistics from 2021 shows that an average of 1,368,296 vehicles passed through these four intersections each month. Speed and red light violations captured at each intersection resulted in an average of 1,113 citations issued each month. This means, on average, .08 percent of the vehicles that traveled through these four photo enforced intersections in 2021 were issued a citation.
Money generated from the photo enforcement program is paid to the vendor, RedFlex (27%), the State and County for statewide law enforcement, victim services, etc. (30%), and the City (43%). The amount received by the City helps cover expenses for photo enforcement staff for the radar vans, court staff and the Judge, legal staff, and the Police Department.
Source: MPD
