RED-LIGHT CAMERA UPDATE:

On Thursday, the Lubbock, Texas city council voted to delay installation of red light cameras after a local television station exposed the city’s short timing of yellow lights at eight of the twelve intersections where the devices were to be installed.

“Many folks believe this is a money grab and then we found out through KCBD Television there’s a discrepancy in timing,” Councilman Gary Boren said, as quoted by KCBD.

Earlier this month, the station cited the rule-of-thumb that Lubbock City Engineer Jere Hart asserted as the basis for timing lights at city intersections. At most of the proposed camera intersections, Hart did not follow his own rule. . . .

Short yellows assure a steady flow of red light camera ticket revenue. A Texas Transportation Institute study found that an extra second of yellow time added to the current ITE formula yields a a 53 percent reduction in the number of tickets issued along with a 40 percent reduction in accidents.

Indeed.