To: Rahm Emanual, Mayor of Chicago, Chicago City Council, The Illinois State House, The Illinois State Senate, and Governor J.B. Pritzker
Ban Red Light and Speed Cameras in Illinois
The City of Chicago and some surrounding suburbs are using an unfair, unsafe and unwanted traffic enforcement camera system. These municipalities installed red light and speed cameras under the pretense of public safety. Traffic enforcement cameras have been proven to be nothing more than revenue generators in most cases; a way for cities to raise money on the backs of taxpayers.
We are calling for the removal and a permanent ban on traffic enforcement cameras in Illinois, which to date have collected over $600,000,000.00 in Chicago alone.
Why is this important?
In 2003 a deal was cut between members of the Mayor Daley administration and Redflex Holdings to allow red light cameras in Chicago. Executives from Redflex Holdings have pled guilty and are awaiting sentencing while the insider from the Dept of Transportation was found guilty on all 20 counts. After seeing the tremendous amount of revenue generated from the red light cameras, the Emanuel administration added speed cameras to the program in October 2013. Several studies have been done by independent agencies that have proven that these cameras do not promote public safety and are primarily used as a revenue generator. This program amounts to nothing more than a tax imposed on the citizens of this state.