Dangerous results

The number of incidents of motorists running red lights in Harlingen decreased following the installation of cameras earlier this year at various intersections across the city.

But at the same time, the number of accidents at those intersections has increased, Harlingen police Chief Danny Castillo said Wednesday.

From May to October, the first six months of the camera program, red-light violations fell by 47.1 percent, from 4,223 to 2,231.

During that same period there were 57 accidents at the intersections where cameras were installed, according to Castillo’s report. That compares to 43 accidents reported at those intersections during the same period last year.

“Whether you have red-light cameras or not, there’s going to be rear-end collisions at intersections,” Castillo said.

He noted that accidents involving serious injuries declined by 33 percent during the reporting period compared to last year at the intersections with cameras.

“More people are stopping (at red lights),” Castillo said. “But there’s also some people that are not stopping and that’s why (some people) are getting rear-ended.”

Mayor Chris Boswell seemed pleased with the report, citing the declines in red-light violations and serious accidents at the targeted intersections.

Harlingen isn’t the only Rio Grande Valley city to turn to red-light cameras to help with traffic enforcement.

Pharr approved red-light cameras earlier this year, though it has yet to implement them. The city’s assistant police chief, Javier Perez, said his department is aware of the Harlingen study and will analyze it as it goes forward with the cameras.

Last week Pharr police met with officials from the Texas Department of Transportation regarding new regulations the state Legislature put into effect regarding the cameras.

Perez said the city hopes to select a contractor to operate the cameras by the end of the year. Pharr has not yet decided which intersections, or how many, will get the cameras.

“We’re basically getting information regarding the regulations,” Perez said. “We’re still in preparation mode. We’ve been meeting to put together everything so that once it’s implemented, it’s implemented correctly and legally.”

McAllen police Chief Victor Rodriguez said he hadn’t yet seen the figures from Harlingen but that his department continues to study data from across the state regarding red-light cameras and provides that information to the City Commission. McAllen has not approved red-light cameras so far.

Texas law requires that cities using red-light cameras give the state 50 percent of the revenue from them, to be distributed among area hospitals for trauma care.