The decision by Houston City residents to discard the city’s red-light camera program has attracted outcries that the occurrence of car accidents could actually increase at red-light intersections.
The red-light camera program was introduced between September 2006 and August 2008 where cameras were put up at 70 intersections with the aim of photographing drivers who ran red lights, making it easier to identify and fine them.
However, in December 2008, a study done at the Rice University showed that the cameras did not affect the rate of car accidents at intersections. Interestingly, though, a 133% increase in auto accidents was reported at intersections without those cameras.
In a highly controversial ballot vote, Houston city residents voted by a 53 percent to 47 percent margin to have the cameras removed. One of the most vocal naysayers of the vote decision has been Brad T. Wyly, a Houston-based attorney who works in a personal injury law firm. Mr. Wyly argues that studies showed that the red light cameras indeed made numerous deadly intersections much safer.
The reason for this, according to the attorney, is that the cameras stopped drivers from running red lights and created more awareness about safer driving.
A study done by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety revealed that, more than 900 deaths and 170,000 injuries were caused by red-light accidents throughout the country in 2004.
This and his background in representing motor vehicle accident victims through his personal injury law firm, has led the attorney to understand the effects of red-light crashes and their severity.
Mr. Wyly is of Wyly Law Firm, P.C., a personal injury law firm that specializes in representation of automobile accident victims in Houston, Harris County and its environs.