City's eyes on governor's pen

While Gov. Charlie Crist debated the terms of a bill approved by the Legislature that would authorize automatic camera systems to ticket red-light runners, local officials planned their next step in implementing the systems. For some, there isn't much of a plan at all.

"We've approved the ordinance but we're just waiting to see what happens with the bill on the governor's desk," Maitland Mayor Doug Kinson said.

Others fretted about whether changes in the law, if signed by Crist, would reduce revenue generated by cameras and possibly penalize red-light runners less.

Revenue was a big element in the Legislature's bill, with estimates of nearly $30 million being generated in the first year for the state by snapshots of license plates of cars that show drivers running red lights. The state estimates that local governments could receive more than $10 million in the first year.

Those large sums would come from hundreds of thousands of red-light runners paying at least $125 per violation, and paying it as a civil penalty that would not incur points on driver's licenses. Even fines from police officers — not cameras — would be subject to the same red-light fine system. As such, automotive insurance companies would not be allowed to increase premiums based on red-light citations.

Winter Springs Mayor John Bush feared that the change in fines and their distribution to the state could cause problems for the city, and he had previously urged Crist not to sign the bill.

Some large organizations, such as the American Automobile Association, have urged Crist not to sign the bill, arguing that only 10 percent of that money would go toward programs to stop red-light running.

Oviedo City Councilman Dominic Persampiere, whose city recently adopted a resolution in support of the cameras and has begun researching their implementation, said he worries that systems could too easily ticket red-light runners who stop beyond the white stop bar, which is illegal but rarely enforced, or don't stop completely before turning right at a red light.

"We were very specific that this would be done for safety, not to generate revenue and to be nitpicky on people just for rolling through a right on red a little bit," he said.

Kinson agreed that he'd like to see some elements of the camera rules improved, including customizing the systems to not ticket drivers who accidentally stop with their car's nose over the stop bar.

"There's kinks that need to be worked out," Kinson said.

For Winter Park, which had voted on an ordinance authorizing a red-light camera system in January 2009, there may be little moving forward until other city priorities are addressed, Mayor Ken Bradley said.

"It's certainly not in our strategic plan," Bradley said. "I think it's important but it's not on our radar screen."