Debate on red light cameras in Florida hots up

3953 University of South Florida researchers have published a report claiming that red light cameras do nothing to improve road safety, directly contradicting a national study by the Institute for Highway Safety that showed a major drop in fatal crashes in cities using red light cameras.USF researchers Barbara Langland-Orban, Etienne Pracht and John Large in a report published this month in the peer-reviewed Florida Public Health Review say cities could do more to prevent red light running before resorting to cameras. They say the key is the length of the yellow light phase: extending it by just one second can virtually eliminate red light running.

Meanwhile, a National Coalition for Safer Roads (NCSR) survey, conducted by national research firm, FrederickPolls, has just been published and concludes that 72 per cent of Floridians support red light safety camera laws. Its website also features the latest study from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety hotly contested by the researchers from USF.