The Arizona House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee voted 5 to 2 to ban photo speed enforcement on Arizona highways. The digital camera surveillance system has been controversial, with some Arizona residents insisting the cameras keep the highways safer and others seeing the cameras as a distraction and a danger. “This was done in the name of revenue,” said State Representative Andy Biggs from Gilbert, “It is a speed tax, and it is being done to fund social programs.”

Biggs voted in favor of the ban. Biggs, who is a Republican, says the bright flashes from the cameras also pose a danger to motorists. Other representatives claim the cameras reduce the number of serious accidents and the number of trips to the emergency room each year. Security cameras on highways and at city intersections have recently come under strong criticism nationwide for being invasive and ineffective.