EVERETT, Wash. — As the population continues to quickly grow in the Puget Sound region, it doesn't take long to see a car run a red light.
It’s one of the reasons why red-light cameras have become so popular across the area.
Ted Hikel spent 20 years on the Lynnwood City Council and voted in favor of red-light cameras in 2006.
"The big problem seemed to be people turning left across traffic and getting t-boned. That's what we were trying to prevent when we originally did the cameras," the former councilmember explained.
The fines collected from the red light cameras were supposed to be used specifically for public safety and only for a limited amount of time, but it didn’t work out that way.
When the Great Recession hit, the money was siphoned away for other needs. Hikel believes access to all that newfound money becomes like a drug.
"It became a part of the regular city budget. It's more than $2 million a year that they collect from the red light cameras. It is an addiction."
Everett is now looking into adding at least seven possible locations for cameras across the city. Red-light cameras were proposed in Everett in 2009 but were never installed. The 2009 locations are being looked at as possible camera locations now:
- Northbound Rucker Ave. at Pacific Ave.
- Eastbound Pacific at Rucker Ave.
- Southbound Evergreen Way at Madison
- Northbound Evergreen Way at E. Casino Road
- Eastbound E. Casino Road at Evergreen Way
- Southwest bound Evergreen Way at Fourth Avenue W.
- Westbound SR 526 off-ramp at Evergreen Way
The cameras have had mixed reviews across the country.
The cameras in Lynnwood generated nearly 20,000 tickets with 111 accidents in 2013. Five years later the number of tickets written in Lynnwood more than doubled, but the number of accidents dropped to just 14.
Hikel believes the cameras work but said cities need to make sure they are spending the money generated properly.
"I would be very cautious," Hikel warned. "I think Everett should set a policy of what they're expecting to have happen. If they put them in and the need doesn't materialize, they should be ready to take the cameras out and not depend on the money alone as a reason to have them."
The Everett City Council's Public Safety Subcommittee is in the beginning stages of gathering information to determine whether the cameras are needed in the city. There will be several public hearings and meetings on the issue if the cameras are determined to be warranted.
A red light camera ticket in Washington state currently costs $124.