Two drivers have filed a lawsuit against the city claiming the red light cameras are illegal because the city doesn't have authority to use cameras as traffic enforcement. more ›

The top cash cow is the light at the corner of Belmont Avenue and Lake Shore Drive which made the city $1.57 million in 2011. more ›

Starting July 1, speed cameras can start monitoring “safety zones” near schools and parks. Find out which areas of the city will be eligible for the new surveillance. Hint: It's pretty much everywhere. more ›

Measures in Springfield this week would bring nearly half of Chicago under the watch of speed cameras designed to catch fast drivers. A push for public safety or revenue grab at the loss of privacy? more ›

Prior to last night's debate on WTTW, Miguel del Valle held a press conference at the intersection of Halsted and Madison, where he said that he would review how the city is implementing its red light camera program if elected mayor and would reform what he called "oppressive" city driving and parking policies. more ›

It looks as though some suburbs are starting to have second thoughts about expanding the use of red light cameras. The reason? A drop in revenue. more ›

It's becoming as constant as death, taxes, and another Cubs-less World Series: the ongoing red light camera drama across the suburbs. Here are two more recent developments. more ›

For a city that is as hell-bent on the implementation of red light cameras as Chicago, you'd think it would jump at the chance to celebrate National Stop on Red Week, a week to promote driving safety and to, you know, always stop at a traffic light as it turned red. But nope, as The Expired Meter points out, the city let if flow right on by. Granted, there's a lot going on in the city right now so the city can't recognize every single campaign. Still, with the focus on driver (and pedestrian) safety in the city (and state), you'd think in local government would have mentioned it. more ›

After the suburbs raised holy hell about a new red light camera ordinance the Cook County Board passed last week, the Board is now backing down on the new ordinance. The Parking Ticket Geek reports that the Board voted 9-4 (with three presents and one absence) to allow the municipalities to opt out of having the red light cameras placed at intersections. Schaumburg, Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Wilmette, and Bartlett were among the 'burbs who were none-too-pleased about the ordinance. Commissioner Tony Periaca, who voted against the original ordinance, said, “It’s an overreach and an encroachment on their sovereignty and sets a dangerous precedence. It’s a way to separate taxpayers from their money. It’s not about safety it’s about revenue.” Commisioner Patricia Murphy, who voted present, didn't exactly rebut Peraica when she expressed concern over that revenue: “If they opt out in great numbers how does it effect our budget. I’m worried what this means to the budget if municipalities choose to opt out. If they opt out you’re not going to have anything left." more ›

In the wake of yesterday's story on accident statistics at red light camera intersections in the city comes another red light camera story, this one in Schaumburg. It seems the village is none-too-pleased about the ordinance passed last week by the Cook County Board, approving a new slew of RLCs to go in at 30 intersections in the Cook County suburbs and now they're fighting back. Last night, the village board passed an ordinance requiring their approval before any RLCs are installed in the village. But Schaumburg isn't the only suburb fighting the new cameras: Arlington Heights, Buffalo Grove, Wilmette, and Bartlett are all taking umbrage with the new cameras and exploring the legality of the board's actions. more ›

Recently, Hispanic aldermen in the city have been pushing for a ban of all things Arizona to protest the state's controversial immigration law, including the Arizona-based Redflex Traffic Systems company, which installed Chicago's 189 red-light cameras. The company is also in charge of operating the cameras and mailing out the $100 tickets to red light runners. The Daley administration signed a five-year, $52 million contract with Redflex in 2008, which cut the costs of each camera system from $100,000 to $24,500. more ›

How many of the small group of average citizens that challenge their red light camera tickets get them dismissed? One percent? Five percent? Well, if you also happen to work for the city of Chicago that number goes up closer to 70 percent. more ›

• With all the hand-wringing over Scott Lee Cohen's replacement done, Simon & Quinn have kicked off their official campaign.
• There's been some controversy at the University of Chicago over a censored Facebook status that was declared a "death threat" by the university.
• With all the talk about red light cameras, Rajiv Shah, Adjunct Assistant Professor at the Department of Communication at UIC, has pinpointed the 11 city cameras that netted the city $2 million or more since 2007.

The Illinois State Senate has passed Senate President John Cullerton’s (D-Chicago) red light camera reform bill which has been the subject of ire from red light camera opponents for not being tough enough. The Parking Ticket Geek has more on the bill and the battle over it. more ›

Earlier this week, the Tribune investigated the lengths of yellow lights at intersections with red light cameras. The Trib has also offered up this visual aid to help understand the timing of those lights. [via] more ›

Red light camera opponents claim the city is reducing the length of yellow lights below the three-second standard at intersections with cameras but the Tribune reports that that while yellow lights are shorter at intersections monitored by cameras, evidence shows that the length of those yellows still meet federal guidelines. Most yellow lights at intersections monitored by cameras in the city last three seconds, "the bare minimum recommended under federal safety guidelines," according to the Tribune. In the suburbs, the yellow lights last between four and four-and-a-half seconds. Critics claim the shorter yellow lights in Chicago make it harder for motorists to stop in time and yields more tickets for the city, while officials say the three-second yellows predate the installation of red-light cameras by decades. more ›

The Parking Ticket Geek has tipped us off to a pair of protests happening this weekend in regards to the ongoing battle over red light cameras. The first happens in Roscoe Village tomorrow from 12 p.m. to 2 p.m. at the intersection of Western and Addison. Sayeth the Geek: more ›

• Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman warned of more layoffs and larger class sizes in another round of budget cuts is implemented.
• A judge ruled Oprah will have to face a defamation lawsuit stemming from comments she made about alleged sexual abuse at her girls' school in South Africa.
• Police are still searching for the driver involved in a hit-and-run on Interstate 80 this morning that killed a construction worker.

The Chicago City Council debated about the city's red light cameras today, but the end result looks to not be pointing to relief for city drivers -- or more accurately, car owners. Instead, that dreaded violation that magically appears in your mailbox could cost $25 - $75 more. more ›

• Naperville mayor George Pradel is recovering after suffering a heart attack Wednesday night.
• 52 puppies were rescued from a South Suburban puppy mill.
• A defense of Scott Lee Cohen. [via]

There's one thing many of Chicago's drivers will find positive from the latest city budget shortfalls -- the Chicago Department of Transportation has stopped installing the loathed red light cameras around the city for now because there's simply no cash to buy new ones. But that doesn't mean you can count on the main intersection near you to remain red light camera free -- the city is shuffling around their camera locations and will move 20 of the current 189 cameras elsewhere, as supposedly deemed necessary by which ones would "have the most positive effect on traffic safety." more ›

Some folks have had enough of the red light cameras that have grown across the area lately. Several dozen people gathered last night in Lombard at the location of RedSpeed-Illinois, one of the state's biggest red light camera providers, to protest these red light cameras. more ›

The accolades keep rolling in. Not only are we Forbes' most stressful American city, but now the National Motorists Association have named Chicago as the worst city to drive through on Labor Day weekend. We...don't have much to argue with there. Seems like there are other cities that probably give us a run for the money (L.A., Atlanta) but the NMA has two specific reasons they outline: shady red light cameras and the parking meter fiasco. more ›

• The Sun-Times uncovered Blair Hull's bid to be appointed to President Obama's vacant senate seat.
• The Trib takes a look at Naperville's red light cameras.
• It wasn't just Chicago dealing with a cool July; for the entire state, it was the coolest July in 85 years.

Citing a lack of results, the city of Schaumburg is getting rid of the one red light camera they had installed. Curious to see how the cameras worked, the city installed one at a particularly busy intersection close to Woodfield Mall. What happened next led to the eventual decision to scrap plans for more. more ›

Because red lights are apparently too complicated for Chicagoans to understand, Edward M. Burke (14th) wants to create a "Red Light Education Program" for red-light runners. In addition to the $100 fine, drivers would have to pay $25 to complete the program or pay an additional $50 fine instead. Burke compared the plan to programs for teen drivers that are required to complete educational programs, saying that the plan could help reduce the number of traffic deaths as it has for teen drivers. He added that 27 percent of the six million accidents that occur on U.S. roadways every year occur at intersections. more ›

With the increase in the use of red light and speed cameras across the city and suburbs also comes an increase in devices to detect those cameras. Some GPS navigation systems have had the function for a while, and now Cobra Electronics is getting in on the act, introducing a radar detector that also alerts the driver when they're approaching a red light or speed camera. The device allows for its internal database to be updated on a regular basis as new cameras are added which should make for a never ending cat-and-mouse cycle. more ›

South Side Ald. Anthony Beale (9th) recently introduced an ordinance that would mandate countdown signals - like the ones for pedestrian walk signals - at intersections where red-light cameras have been (or will be) installed. more ›

Until recently, CTA drivers caught running red lights had to pay their own traffic citations. Thanks to a new policy, they are no longer financially liable for their violations. Instead, the Transit Authority will pick up the tab for their drivers' fines, which in turn can be paid with public funds. Good news if you drive a city bus, bad news for your average taxpayer. CTA spokeswoman Noelle Gaffney pseudo-explains that the new policy was implemented "due to objections from the union and the CTA's wish to streamline a cumbersome process to strengthen enforcement." Strengthened enforcement that no longer includes traffic tickets for running lights, apparently. more ›

Photo by trippchicago
• Mayor Daley on Blago: "I’ve said, ‘cuckoo’ once. I’ll say it again: ‘Cuckoo.’"
• We remember skipping college classes to stay home to eat popcorn and watch the OJ Simpson verdict. We might have to play hooky again on Monday, when ABC7 will have live coverage of the start of Blago's impeachment trial.
• Chicago police officer William Cozzi has pleaded guilty to the 2005 beating of a 60-year-old man shackled and handcuffed to a wheelchair. So can somebody please fire this asshole now?