Red-light cameras coming to N.J. intersections

On a typical day in Stratford, more than 10,000 drivers navigate the intersection at White Horse Road and Berlin Avenue, near the Lindenwold High-Speed Line station, Kennedy Memorial Hospital, and the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey.

About 125 of them run the stoplight there, according to a recent study.

With the arrival of red-light cameras, Ron Morello, police chief of the Camden County borough, hopes the number of infractions - and accidents - will decline dramatically. Cameras could be installed by Thanksgiving, Morello predicted, followed a month later by the start of $85 tickets for violations.

Since November, the state Department of Transportation has granted 22 New Jersey municipalities permission to install cameras at dozens of intersections. Six Camden and Gloucester County towns were given approvals for nine locations.

So far, none of the systems is up and running, according to the department. Most towns, including Cherry Hill and Monroe Township, Gloucester County, have yet to select a camera company.

Brick Township, Ocean County, is likely to be the first in the state to snap the photo of an offending vehicle. In March, a contract was signed with American Traffic Solutions, the Phoenix firm behind Philadelphia's camera system. ATS hopes to get the go-ahead from the Transportation Department to break ground in about a month and have cameras ready by late September.

Traffic-light cameras in Deptford and Glassboro also could come on line by Halloween. Drivers with a heavy foot would be caught on camera where Route 41 meets Deptford Center Road near Deptford Mall.

Glassboro will monitor Route 47 at Dalton Drive near Rowan University - its most dangerous crossroads, with 52 accidents since January 2007, said Police Chief Alex Fanfarillo.

Both towns have contracted with ATS. Stratford recently awarded its contract to Redflex, another Phoenix company, pending legal review. The systems are financed by the municipalities.

About 77 percent of New Jersey drivers favor red-light cameras, according to a poll released last year by the AAA Clubs of New Jersey.

"I personally think they should have cameras at every light," said Sean Ransom, 28, a bank administrator from Magnolia, who stopped in at an AT&T Store yesterday at the targeted intersection in Deptford.

"It's fine by me. Some people do drive crazy," said Deborah Labadie, 56, a substitute teacher from Gloucester Township, sitting in her Ford Escape at the Friendly's restaurant across the street.

Not in favor of the concept was Maurice Lyons, 34, a Colorado cardiothoracic surgeon who stopped into Friendly's en route from the airport to visit area relatives.

"It's another intrusion into our personal freedoms," he said. "I think it's sneaky."

Installation of traffic-light cameras takes about two weeks, contractors say. Then there's a 30-day trial period, during which police officers get training in reviewing photos and ordering citations, the public is alerted, and violators are mailed warnings rather than tickets, according to an ATS spokesman.

After that, violators will be fined, but no points will be applied to driving records.

Because the system identifies license plates rather than drivers, the ticket goes to the vehicle's owner. That person can pay the fine, contest the ticket, or drop a dime on the real driver so the ticket can be reissued to that person, officials said.

Though companies such as ATS mail the tickets, citations are issued only after local law enforcement reviews the photographic evidence, said Chief Ed Smith of Gloucester Township, where ATS surveillance systems are to be installed at four intersections on Blackwood-Clementon Road.

Safety, not income, is the primary motive for the projects, say local police chiefs.

"Obviously, there's going to be money generated, but . . . our primary goal is to reduce the number of accidents," said Glassboro's Fanfarillo.

"I don't care if it raises a dime. The purpose of the police department's application is to reduce crashes," Smith said.

"Tickets aren't revenue-generators," he added. "They're driving-habit modifiers."