Red light cameras come to Round Rock

Add Round Rock to the list of cities with red light cameras.

The city of Round Rock is still in the process of getting its red-light cameras in place after unanimously approving their use in September.

Assistant Police Chief Tim Ryle - who initially hoped to have the program up and running by the first of the year - said the city is still working on selecting a vendor to implement the program.

"We haven't quite gotten there yet," Ryle said. "We are hoping to award a contract during a city council meeting this month.

"Hopefully the vendor will be able to get to work on it in February. That's the kind of time frame we're working with right now."

[...]

After the initial approval of the ordinance in September, Ryle said he considers the implementation of a red-light camera program a force multiplier and more efficient than having police officers patrolling problem intersections.

"This is a great example of how improvements in technology bring improvements to the police department," Ryle said. "Because officers will not need to be patrolling those intersections, it will free them up to address other issues."

That's a point that doesn't get as much discussion as perhaps it should. There's a decent argument to be made that the cameras can help cities spend their traffic-enforcement dollars more wisely. Certainly, it's cheaper to have the cameras than a patrol car or two staked out. As with so many other aspects of the red light camera debate, it's not something I've seen the cameras' opponents talk about. Eye on Williamson has more.

Posted by Charles Kuffner on January 12, 2008 to Planes, Trains, and Automobiles