Drivers in Orange County who run red lights could expect to begin receiving citations from February 28, said Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs.
Backed up by Orange County Commissioners Scott Boyd (District 1) and Tiffany Moore Russell (District 6), Jacobs issued a stern warning to red light violators at the launch of the road safety program on Monday morning at Old Winter Garden Road and Hiawassee Road, one of the ten intersections equipped to monitor red light violations.
Red light violators will be subject to a fine of $158 for each offense caught on camera, and if the ticket is not paid in a timely manner the fine jumps to $262, Jacobs said.
“I want our citizens and visitors to know that this program is not about collecting fines…it’s about preventing injuries and savings lives,” Jacobs said. “We don’t want you to get a ticket and have to pay a fine. We want you to obey the traffic signals and stay safe.”
Jacobs noted that, Orange County’s public awareness campaign will be ongoing and comprehensive, going well beyond the 30 days of the program’s launch date and the start of citations to red light violators.
In 2009, Orange County Commission approved a red light running ordinance, but delayed its implementation owing to lack of legislation state-wide. Last July, the ordinance was updated and a vendor, American Traffic Solutions, identified a month later.
Citing an Institute of Highway Safety study, Jacobs pointed out that in 2007, red light running crashes killed more than 900 people and injured more than 153,000.
Former Orange County Commissioner Linda Stewart, long a champion of red light cameras and pedestrian safety said in brief remarks, “sometimes you have to wait for legislation and even though it has taken five years, we can now make sure our intersections are safe.”
The other nine locations in Orange County that will be equipped with safety cameras operating 24 hours a day are: John Young Parkway at Central Florida Parkway; Dean Road at University Boulevard; Lake Underhill Road at Dean Road; Oak Ridge Road at Texas Avenue; Hiawassee Road at Clarcona Ocoee Road; Oak Ridge Road at John Young Parkway; Alafaya Trail at Lake Under hill Road; University Boulevard at Rouse Road; and Chickasaw Trail at Lake Underhill Road.
