Red light runners may make it possible for Manteca Police to step up enforcement for illegal parking — semi-trucks and otherwise — plus other non-moving violations.
And those who refuse to adhere to the vehicle code rules on how to deal with yellow or amber lights also could significantly increase the chances of motorists being nailed for running stop signs and speeding.
Sounds far-fetched.
Not really.
A decision by city leaders to effectively crackdown on red light runners to improve safety on Manteca’s streets is shaping up to have a bonus effect — a new funding source that isn’t a tax per se to hire additional police personnel.
Elected leaders, when they entered the red light camera contract with American Traffic Solutions, did so with two key conditions.
The contract, as written, costs the city $873,600 a year with an asterisk for placement, maintenance, and operation of red light camera equipment at five intersections.
The asterisk is that if the city doesn’t collect enough fines in a 12-month period to cover the $873,600, the shortfall that is “owed” is wiped out.
The other condition that any revenue from tickets received annually beyond $873,600 was to be set aside to further expand the traffic unit.
When the contract was issued, city leaders were hopeful that it might fund the annual cost of a community service officer for the traffic unit.
Adding personnel was a bonus, though, given the main aim was to reduce red light running that is responsible for 20 percent of the city’s annual 1,000 plus traffic collisions.
Three months into all five intersections being up and running, the city is on pace to see upwards of $700,000 flow into the set aside account for the traffic unit after paying ATS $873,600.
Assuming the current trend of 43.4 tickets being issued on a daily basis continues, the city theoretically could hire two more traffic enforcement officers or four community service traffic officers, or a combination there of.
And the city would still have $200,000 or so in reserves from red light ticket revenue to guard against a future slowdown in the ticket money stream.
Whether that scenarios plays out, it is clear the city will likely be in position to use the fund to hire one traffic officer or two community service officers (CSO) for the traffic unit.
Keep in mind, that the lower cost CSO can legally issue tickets for non-moving violations, take over handling most traffic collisions, and do tasks that don’t require a police officer.
A CSO could free up enough time from the existing five officers that they end up having the effectiveness of almost a sixth officer to tackle the most egregious traffic issues that are moving violations.
Such violations — stop sign running, speeding, unsafe lane changes or turn movements, texting while driving and such — are contributing factors to traffic collisions.
And in terms of sheer property loses, bodily harm and even death, traffic collisions cause more harm in Manteca than crime per se.
The traffic unit had five officers until 2009 when budget cuts due to the Great Recessions sparked by the liar loan mortgage crisis trimmed the unit down to three officers.
It wasn’t until several years ago the unit was restored to five officers.
Meanwhile, Manteca’s population has gone from 67,000 to 95,000 with a corresponding increase in traffic.
The current pace of 43.4 tickets per day is based on the three week period between Aug. 1 and Aug. 21.
In a year’s time, that translates to 15,800 tickets.
The “break-even” point when the ATS contract is covered is around 7,800 tickets a year.
Keep in mind, Manteca only receives roughly 20 percent of every $490 red light runner ticket.
The bulk goes to the court system and the State of California.
Manteca starts accumulating money to spend on the traffic unit after its share of ticket revenue has covered the $873,600 ATS contract.
The total valuation, by the way, of the 15,800 tickets is $7,771,400.
Ideally, the economic hit changes driving behavior especially when a moving violation could also send a motorist’s insurance premium up.
Police Chief Stephen Schluer emphasized from the start that is the department’s goal in the deployment of red light cameras.
Schluer also noted that other cities with the cameras reported a residual impact of more people complying with vehicle code laws when it comes to traffic signals even if they did not receive a ticket or are not driving through an intersection equipped with the cameras.
To contact Dennis Wyatt, email dwyatt@mantecabulletin.com
