The Impact of Red Light Cameras on Crashes Within Miami–Dade County, Florida

Abstract

Objective: To determine the safety effect of red light camera (RLC) programs, this study attempted to estimate its impact on collisions within Miami–Dade County, Florida

Methods: A before–after evaluation using a comparison group along with traffic control correction was employed. Twenty signalized intersections with RLCs that began enforcement on January 1, 2011, were matched to 2 comparison sites located at least 2 miles from camera sites to minimize spillover effect. An empirical Bayes analysis was used to account for potential regression to the mean effects. An index of effectiveness along with 95% confidence intervals were calculated based on the comparison between the estimated and actual number of crashes in the after period.

Results: During the first year, RLC sites experienced a marginal decrease in right angle/turn collisions (−3%), a significant increase in rear-end collisions (+40%), and significant decreases in all injury (−19%) and RLR-related injury collisions (−24%). An increase in right angle/turning (+14%) and rear-end (+51%) collisions at the RLC sites was observed after 2 years despite camera enforcement. A significant reduction in RLR-related injury crashes (−17%), however, was still observed after 2 years. A nonsignificant decline in all injury collisions (−12%) was also noted.

Conclusions: RLCs showed a benefit in reducing RLR-related injury collisions at camera sites after enforcement commenced, yet its tradeoff was a large increase in rear-end collisions. There was inconclusive evidence whether RLCs affected right angle/turning and all injury collisions. Statutory changes in crash reporting during the second year of camera enforcement affected the incidence of right angle and rear-end collisions; nevertheless, a “novelty effect” could not be ruled out. Future research should consider events such as low frequencies of severe injury/fatal collisions and changes in crash reporting requirements when conducting RLC analyses.

Keywords:

• cameras
• vehicle
• crashes
• injuries
• empirical Bayes

Acknowledgment

We thank the Florida Department of Transportation for providing the motor vehicle crash data used in this analysis.