I was driving on Northern Boulevard, yesterday, heading westbound approaching Douglaston Parkway, when the traffic light at the intersection turned yellow. I was approximately twenty (20) feet away from the intersection traveling approximately 30 mph. Immediately, I realized that if I was going to bring my car to a stop at the intersection, I would have to make what would be an unusually abrupt stop. I immediately glanced into my rearview mirror and observed a van that was more than twice the size of my car was tail-gaiting my car by about ten (10) feet. It was clear to me that if was to hit the brakes I would surely be rear-ended by the van.

Normally, in such a scenario, the defensive driving move would be to go through the yellow light rather than risk being rear-ended; however in this particular instance, I knew that the intersection was controlled by a red-light camera; therefore, I knew that going through the light would almost guarantee me getting a fine for $50.00.

I made a quick decision to blow the yellow/red light regardless of the changing traffic light. I am glad I did. Sure enough, the van also barreled through the intersection behind me.

It is very likely that in a few weeks I will be receiving a summons in the mail with photographs showing me going through the red light. But I am also certain of the fact that if I had stopped for the light, I would have surely been a victim of a horrific rear-end impact.

Rear-end impacts are no joke. They are the number one cause of whiplash injuries in the world, i.e., injuries affecting the human cervical spine (the neck) as well as the temporomandibular joint (TMJ).

Since the installation of red-light cameras, I have received an increased report of rear-end impacts attributed to the presence of such cameras or the fear of the presence of such cameras.

The City of New York as well as many other municipalities in the state of New York, not to mention the entire nation, claims that these red-light cameras are necessary to curb intersection accidents. I disagree. I submit that red-light cameras, while speciously create the image that our roads are safer, in reality are just a ploy for raising revenues by penalizing frequent drivers on the road.

Recently I observed a red-light camera at the intersection of Marcus Avenue and Lakeville Road on a weekday evening for a period of five (5) minutes. During this five minute period of time, the flash on the camera went off nice (9) times. That is 108 times per hour which equals 2,592 red camera summonses per day. At a rate of $50.00 per ticket, the total revenues equal $129,600.00 daily, for a total of $47,304,000.00 per year. This is from a single red light camera.

According to BIG John there are currently at least 320 red light cameras in NYC alone (54 in Manhattan, 47 in Bronx, 102 in Brooklyn, 90 in Queens and 27 in Staten Island). According to the Nassau County Traffic and Parking Violations Agency, and Suffolk County, in Nassau and Suffolk Counties there are at least 94 intersections with red light cameras some of which have cameras covering two or more directions of travel.

Doing the math, the annual revenues generated from red light cameras in NYC and Long Island on an annual basis appears to be in the ballpark of $19,583,856,000.00. There are more red-light cameras being installed on a daily basis.

If you or someone you know has been injured as a result of an auto accident at an intersection, whether or not the accident is attributed to the presence of a red-light camera, I am interested in hearing from you. Please contact me at 212-529-7848 (that’s 212-LAW-SUIT) or email me through my link at www.omraniandtaub.com