Sierra Vista — On Monday, the second of five dangerous intersections slated for traffic photo enforcement cameras in Sierra Vista will begin a month-long warning period. Installed at the intersection of State Route 92 and Avenida Cochise to monitor northbound and southbound traffic on SR 92, the cameras will monitor red light running and excessive speeds exceeding 10 mph over the speed limit. During this warning period violators will receive warning letters. The camera will be fully operational on March 11, after which citations will be issued.
After obtaining the appropriate state required permits, the city and its vendor, Redflex, will proceed with installing the remaining photo enforcement cameras along other locations within the state corridor within the next six months. Warning and full operational phases will be announced appropriately.
Sierra Vista’s first traffic enforcement cameras were installed in October at the intersection of Fry Boulevard and 7th Street. Last year, the camera recorded 2,235 (1,402 red light and 933 speed) violations at the intersection which monitors westbound traffic on Fry Blvd. Since installing the traffic enforcement cameras, accidents at this intersection have been reduced by more than 40 percent.
The photo enforcement cameras are another resource to assist the police department in keeping the community safe, and are not intended to replace what officers do, but rather to enhance their overall effectiveness. According to the Arizona Department of Public Safety, it is estimated that the cameras save at least three lives a month in Arizona and hundreds of thousands of dollars in preventable vehicle damages. In Sierra Vista, nearly one quarter of the total traffic accidents and 17 percent of the injury accidents occurring city-wide within the last five years have been at the five intersections scheduled for enforcement.
For more information, go to www.SierraVistaAZ.gov.
