The leading candidate for red light traffic cameras should the Manteca City Council give them the green light on Tuesday is the intersection at Daniels Street at Airport Way.

In a 12-month period, data showed there were six “in intersection” collisions attributed to red light running at that location.

There was another four blamed on people who were trying to run a red light and rear-ended a vehicle in front of them that was complying with the California Vehicle Code by coming to a stop.

And to be clear, the drivers being rear-ended weren’t making any sudden moves to slam on their brakes.

The final determination of the intersections selected for red light cameras will be determined by a set process following state law if the council when they meet Tuesday at 6 p.m. at the Civic Center, 1001 W. Center St., opts to go forward at the end of the public hearing.

It will be based on collision data such as the frequency and severity as well as complaints the police department has received from the public.

The contract is based on the number of approaches to intersections that are equipped with cameras.

Manteca Police Chief Steve Schluer is planning to work with the American Traffic Solutions for 20 approaches initially but the contact before the city will allow up to 28 approaches if needed.

That means there will be between five and seven intersections in Manteca that could have red light cameras in place in a bid to reduce red running that is a factor in just under 20 percent of all collisions in Manteca.

In 2022, there were more than 1,000 traffic accidents handled by the Manteca Police Department.

The contract represents a $1.5 million commitment on the part of American Traffic Solutions in terms of the technology being installed as well as the support and processing of data that is collected and forwarded to Manteca Police for review.

It is the $1.5 million investment in Manteca by the firm that contracts with more than 300 cities that underscores just how prevalent and serious red light running is in Manteca and other cities such as Tracy and Modesto where American Traffic Solutions is also working to install cameras.

That’s because California law requires contracts cities enter into with red light camera firms to be revenue neutral.

In a nutshell, that means American Traffic Solutions’ payment can’t be tied directly to the number of tickets issued.

Manteca will be billed monthly by the approach — with each intersection fully equipped with cameras has four approaches.

The city will submit payments on  a quarterly basis relying on what revenue they derive from their roughly 25 percent share of a $490 red light ticket. The balance goes to the state and court system.

At the end of the year, if Manteca fails to cover the complete tab for the approach billings, American Traffic Systems forgives the balance.

The city is out nothing.

Should the revenue from red light running tickets exceed what American Traffic Systems is due, it will go into an account being created to help fund the future hiring of a community service officer to help augment the enforcement efforts of the police department’s six officer traffic unit.

Data compiled by the National Coalition for Safer Roads indicate:

*More than 800 people per year are killed in red light accidents.

*In 2021, 1,109 people were killed in crashes that involved red light running.

*Red light safety cameras reduced the fatal red light running crash rate in large cities by 21 percent and the rate of all types of fatal crashes at signalized intersections by 14 percent.

*In 14 cities where cameras were removed, the fatal red-light-running crash rate increased by 30%, and the rate of all fatal crashes increased by 16% at all signalized intersections.

*Red-light running crashes led to around 116,000 injuries and 928 fatalities in 2020.

*Red light cameras captured more than 100,600 offenses in Tampa, Florida in 2022

Typically, 70 percent of the individual instances where the technology uses radar, high definition cameras and such to identify red light runners pass muster of police officers reviewing the data.

Once collected data is determined by police to meet the legal threshold of a red light running offense in California, American Traffic Solutions is authorized to process and mail the citation in strict accordance to state law.

The simple deployment of red light cameras have a domino effect at reducing other traffic offenses such as speeding and including red light running at intersections without cameras.

The “halo effect,” if you will, is the heightened sense of drivers that they need to follow the law or else they could be subject to costly traffic fines.

It would create a perceived reputation for Manteca that if you break traffic laws your odds of paying their price is higher.

Once the cameras are installed, there is a 30-day grace period.

Violators “caught” will be mailed warnings during that time.

Tickets, per se, won’t be issued until after 30 days.

Signs warning that red light cameras are in use will be posted 200 feet from intersections.