Now, most people, if pressed, will say that it’s not exactly a terrible idea to have traffic cameras.  It’s a way to help deter irresponsible driving behaviors, a way to make people think twice before they, for example, blast through a red light.  And in an age when a cop can’t be on every corner, well, sometimes that camera just makes sense.

But Chicago residents are finding themselves in a bit of a quandary.  They admit to liking having the cameras around, especially in areas that have a lot of accidents, where they’re likely to do the most good.  But they also admit that they don’t like the upswing in the sheer NUMBER of these cameras.  The biggest complaint is that Chicago is no longer using them as a public safety tool, but as a last-ditch desperation move to catch the most number of traffic offenders and mail out hundreds of tickets.  A poll from the Chicago Tribune  / WGN illustrates this at right.

And they’ll all admit, as I will, that traffic infractions should carry penalties, but there needs to be discretion.  There needs to be an acknowledgement on the authorities’ part that things happen.  People are busy, people are unfocused, people cannot always devote the attention they should to their driving efforts.  Again, they should, but they can’t.  Most fines issued outside the city of Chicago, for example, are not for those who ignore red lights, but rather for those who fail to come to a complete stop at a red light before executing a right hand turn.  This is an illegal maneuver, of course, but it’s one that has precious little safety ramifications.  It’s an imperfection, not a hazard.

Humans are imperfect creatures, and imperfection should not be punishable by fines.

The traffic cameras remove this discretion and instead turn streets into a massive civil ATM for the city of Chicago, who, due to out of control spending, is desperate for cash.